An Endless mystery
by Shimy
Summary: Basically, this is what happens between the moment Kida returned and the end of the movie. Now rated T just to be safe.
1. Extinguishing the light

Kida felt as if her whole world – which had paradoxically just been saved by Milo Thatch and his friends – was collapsing

Disclaimer: Milo, Kida, and all others mentioned here are property of the Disney film Atlantis.

Summary: what happens between the moment Kida returned and the end of the movie. It might change later, though. This is my first Atlantean story and my first fanfiction written in English. As I am French, please feel free to correct me about any grammar mistake I might have made. I would be grateful. And if you have some time to spare, please review it! (-;

An Endless Mystery

Kida felt as if her whole world – which had paradoxically just been saved by Milo Thatch and his friends – was collapsing. So much had happened in such a short time! And there she was, in the throne room, sobbing and crying painful tears. She could not believe her father, her Tahbtoap, the man who had been watching over her for centuries, her only family, was dead. He laid there, resting in Death's welcoming arms while the entire city of Atlantis was celebrating its victory against Rourke and his mercenaries. Yet victory tasted bitter for Kida. What a victory it was! The Atlantean king had been cruelly murdered, and she, Kidagakash, the mighty warrior princess, had not been able to do anything to prevent it. Kida's body suddenly began to shiver with anger and sorrow. She felt so guilty, so lonely, and the burden of royalty which had brutally fallen upon her just seemed way too heavy for her to bear. King Kashekim Nedack's corpse laid on the throne. Kida could not remember the last time she had seen his body filled with such peace. The Atlantean princess knew that her father would not have lived much longer anyway. Kida just wished she would have been there to help him, to hold his hand reassuringly and to smile to him until the very last breath came out of his lungs. But Kida had not been there. She had failed to tell her father one last time how much she cared for him and how much she loved him. Kida knew she would never forgive herself. Tears rolling upon her warm cheeks, she fell onto her knees, clutching like a lost treasure her father's hand. It felt so old, so cold, yet so comforting. While her body began to relax a little, Kida wondered how much time had elapsed since she had awoken into Milo's gentle arms.

"Milo…" she whispered.

Automatically, a soft smile spread over her mourning face. Milo. He had given her so much! He had answered questions she had been wondering about for centuries. He had been able to awake the Atlantean flying machines which had sunk into oblivion for so long. He had followed her without a mere doubt to help her and decipher the ancient murals. He had risked his own life to save Atlantis. He, who had only arrived the day before, had been ready to sacrifice himself for her people.

Kida sighed deeply. Thinking of Milo brought her peace but it was synonymous of sorrow, too. She felt her heart – or, at least, she assumed it was her heart – aching and contracting painfully beneath her skin. Milo would soon leave Atlantis forever. He would return to his home, to the surface world where he belonged. He would leave the lost empire, which meant her, behind him. Kida promised herself she would assure Milo and his friends that they would always be welcome in Atlantis and could return whenever they wanted to. The Leviathan would be ordered to let them pass without any harm.

Kida stoop up quietly and put her father's hand on his chest, where it had to rest for all eternity. Stroking silently his hair, she stopped crying and waited for the night to pass. It was not long before she heard the door open, almost noiselessly. Turning around, she spotted Milo, standing in the darkness, not moving a muscle, apparently unsure of what he should do next.

"Um…Kida?", he hesitantly asked.

"Yes, Milo? What do you want?", she answered him, though she did not get an inch closer to him.

"Oh...well…I just wanted to check if you were okay. I mean, no, I know you're not okay, but I thought that maybe I could help?"

"That is very kind of you, Milo, but no, I don't think you can help, unless you can bring my father back to life. Can you?"

"Er…no, I can't, but-"

"Then there is nothing you can do for me.", Kida brutally interrupted him. "You should leave me here and enjoy yourself with your friends. It is no every day you can celebrate like this."

_There's no point to celebrate anything without you, Kida._

Milo slowly made his way towards the Atlantean woman he had grown to care so much for. She did not move. While walking, Milo took the crystal King Kashekim had given him out of his pocket and handed it to Kida. Her face hardened.

"How comes _you_ had this crystal ?!"

"Your father gave it to me before he passed away." Milo answered matter-of-factly. "He made me promise to save you and Atlantis. You have been saved. I kept my promise and I suppose I now have to return this crystal to its rightful owner. That means you."

Kida could only stare at the glowing piece of crystal Milo was handing to her. Shaking her head, she reached out for his hand, took the crystal and placed it around his neck.

"This crystal is yours. My Tahbtoap wanted you to bear it. I will not steal it from you."

"Kida, if it can be of any help, I just want you to know I understand how you feel and-"

"NO ! You do not understand at all !!", she cut him off, suddenly yelling. "How could YOU understand how I feel?! He was the only family I got !! He was everything to me! And now he's gone!! He's gone and I did not even bid him farewell !!"

Milo did not respond immediately. He just stood there, in front of her, saying nothing. The crystal around his neck glowed slightly, and Kida barely saw a single tear dropping from Milo's eyes. He slowly turned his back to her and walked away. Before he left the throne room, he stopped in his tracks.

"You know, Kida…You are right, I can't understand how you feel: I don't even remember my own mother and father. At least you got the chance to know your parents."

Kida's jaw dropped open. A wave of shame overwhelmed her as she realized how harsh she had been towards Milo, who had only wanted to comfort her. She felt horrible.

Milo did not wait for her to apologize. He smiled sadly.

"My Grandpa once told me that death is not extinguishing the light; it is putting out the lamp because the dawn has come."


	2. Missing

Milo did not blame Kida at all. He knew what it felt like to loose the only relative you had left. Nevertheless, Kida's sharp words had cut him deeply within his heart and soul. He _did_ understand her reaction, though.

_When you have nothing to soothe you, all you can do is hurting someone else to release the burning pain and icing anger you have accumulated._

Sighing, Milo lifted his head to look at the bright crystal which floated peacefully above the entire city of Atlantis. Slowly, he left the palace behind him and walked through the overcrowded streets. Everywhere he looked, people were singing, dancing, laughing, enjoying themselves and celebrating the new Age which had bestowed upon the Lost Empire. He did neither notice the whispers which followed him, nor the numerous dark fingers pointing at the crystal he was bearing. And had he noticed them, he would not have cared at all. Milo just kept hanging around in silence.

_What should I do? Grandpa, I wish you could help me once more…_

It was only when he felt his shoes bathing into a pool of water that he snapped out of it. At first astonished, he could not help but smile when he realized where he was. Unconsciously, he had returned to the exact place Kida and he had been swimming. He could spot the ancient murals at a distance, and noticed they were only half-submerged.

Milo smiled. He had an idea.

…

Kida wanted to slap herself. Not only had she yelled against Milo, but she knew she had hurt him. She remembered his reaction when she had told him about the mehbehlmoak and the loss of her mother. What was it that he told her? "I'm sorry. If it's any consolation, I know how you feel because I lost my…"

Suddenly, it hit her. When she and Milo had climbed the old statue and admired Atlantis, he had wished his _grandfather_ could be there with him. And then she remembered the picture she had found in his satchel. And the words he had spoken: "At least, you got the chance to know your parents". Did that mean he never knew his own? Kida realized Milo had been an orphan for much longer than her. And apparently, he had also lost his grandfather, whom he seemed to have loved deeply.

"What have I done? He only wanted to comfort me."

"That's absolutely right."

Kida jumped out of surprise to see the man who had dared to startle her. Dr Joshua Sweet. What was he doing there?

_Has something happened to Atlantis? Has something happened to Milo?_, she silently worried.

"What brings you here?"

"I saw Milo going out of here and he did not just look like he was having fun. I wondered what happened. What's more, I wanted to recover my own satchel. I left it here before we went after Rourke."

Kida lowered her gaze to the bottom of the throne and spotted indeed the doctor's satchel.

"Then you were there when my father passed away, were you not?"

"I was. I have sworn to protect human life. I had to respect that promise. If you are wondering, your father suffered internal bleeding. That's what killed him. I am truly sorry for your loss."

"You do not have anything to be sorry about. You weren't the one who hit him. And you did all you could to help him. I thank you."

"Well…If it can help, your father knew how much you loved him. He said it was the only thing he had left in this world."

Kida did not answer. But her face softened. Knowing that was an incredible relief to her.

"What happened with Milo?" Joshua Sweet asked again.

Kida sighed and fought back her tears.

"I let him down. He came here to comfort me and I just shouted at him. He must be mad at me."

"Rubbish! Milo, mad at you? It is just as stupid as if you were saying he doesn't love books! Milo likes you very much."

"I don't deserve it. What's more, he will leave Atlantis with you and your friends."

"You are in no position to determine if you are worthy or not of Milo's affection. That's his decision. And Milo did not seem too eager to leave your city. Now, I'll take my satchel and get some fun with the others."

Kida handed him his satchel. He grabbed it and walked away from her. Kida found it strange to have such a soft soul within such a muscular and massive body. Before he disappeared completely from her sight, Dr Sweet turned once more to her and let out a single sentence.

"If Milo is to come with us back to the surface, he'd better come out of wherever he's hiding! Nobody's seen him. Perhaps you could solve this problem."

Kida did not believe her ears. Milo was nowhere to be seen?

"Well then," she spoke in a determined voice, "I'm going to find him and apologize for my behaviour".

Kida ran out of the Atlantean palace as fast as she could.


	3. Renewed hope

Okay, so this is the 3rd chapter. I tried to do my best but I am actually a bit disappointed for I know it would be much better if I wrote it in my native language. Again, I would be grateful if you could correct any grammar or vocabulary mistake I might have made. And I would delighted and even more grateful if you could review it ! Thank you anyway for just reading !

...

Feeling the refreshing wind in her face brought Kida a delightful sensation of freedom and innocence. She gained speed with every step she made, running as fast as her legs would enable her. Several times, she cried out Milo's name, hoping he would respond. The only answer she got was the fading music of some famous Atlantean songs which seemed to embrace the city. Kida figured out Milo could not be in the city itself. If he were, then someone would have seen him, for he could not avoid the numerous demonstrations of gratitude her people expressed to him. She playfully smiled while running, guessing Milo was nothing but embarrassed by the whole situation.

Kida passed by the Ketak Milo destroyed the day before with increasing speed. It was not long before she reached the giant statue she had climbed up with the scholar. She _did_ hope he was up there. Not even stopping to breathe, she grabbed the nearest and strongest liana she could find and began her ascension. Once on top, she let out a disappointed sigh. Nobody but her stood there.

"Where _is_ he? Great Kings, he can't have just disappeared like that! Am I a huntress, or am I not? Yadh-La GheM boak! Milo, no matter where you are, I will find you!"

Kida's body shivered slightly and she briefly wondered why. There was indeed a breeze blowing, yet it was soft and warm.

_Just like Milo._

Kida let her gaze fall upon her city. The Crystal's blue light, the fires, the lamps, and the fireflies-globes gently illuminated Atlantis. Although it was impossible for her to say whether her city would be thriving again or not, she was filled with renewed hope. Kida shook her head and tried to keep a clear mind, focusing on what mattered most to her at the moment: Milo. Mentally listing the places she had already visited and the ones she still needed to check, the huntress spanned several times on herself and pricked up her ears. Kida frowned and kept a look-out. Mere seconds later, she caught a glimpse of a parrot-lizards colony, flying in the air, shrieking, and apparently fleeing something. It was then she made out a bright blue light in the distance, coming out of nowhere. Peering at it, she smiled triumphantly.

"Seems like I have finally found you, Milo James Thatch!"

Kida quickly climbed down the giant statue and cut a path through the centuries-old Atlantean ruins. The more she ran, the more she could hear a strange dull sound, like a buzz. Curiosity taking over her, she slowed down once she neared the place she was heading to. Noiselessly, she stepped forward and was left speechless.

Milo was indeed there. More or less. His clothes were lying on broken pillar, beside his satchel, but Kida could not find the linguist. She then gaped at the ancient murals she had shown to the scholar. The level of water having lowered, they were only half-submerged now. Kida stuttered something in Atlantean and looked in awe to the spectacle she was witnessing.

The murals blazed, each carving flaring with a bright cerulean light. Each picture she looked at seemed to wink at her, awakening from bleak oblivion, making a shiver run through the young Atlantean woman's body.

Kida snapped out of it when she heard a loud splash beneath her. Staring, she saw Milo, who was breathing hard, swimming towards the broken pillar. He had obviously dived deeply, but seemed extremely pleased with himself. Kida noticed his crystal glowing brightly, too, and she marvelled at his ability to read Atlantean.

_How did he do this?_

A broad smile came upon her face, for Milo had apparently not noticed her presence. Taking advantage of this, she raced towards the broken pillar, took his clothes and put them aside with his satchel. She removed her loincloth, hid in the shadows and waited for him to reach the stairs.

"Pfff!...That was quite a task, indeed! I hope Kida will like it.", he blurted out while emerging from the water, of course completely soaked. His underpants were clutching to his hips and Kida barely let out a giggle, remembering the way those strange clothes had swollen when he had first got into the water with her. Milo kept looking around, frantically searching for his trousers and shirt.

"Hey…Jiminy Christmas!! Where the hell did I put my clothes?! I was sure they were on this pillar…"

"Well, I don't think you need them right now."

Milo, startled, jumped off the ground and fell backwards into the pool again. Kida decided it was time for her to leave her hiding-place and stepped forward, coming out of the shelter of the trees. The look on Milo's face was priceless as he stared at her.

"Kida!! I…I didn't know you were here! Hey, you almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Sure enough", she smiled.

"So, er…what brings you here?"

"How did you do this?" she pointed at the murals.

"Well, actually I didn't mean this to happen" he laughed weakly, "I just dived and deciphered some Atlantean text. As I could not properly see, I used your father's crystal to enlighten me and put it close to the murals. I caught a glimpse of a slot like the one on the Ketak and put the crystal into it. And then, well, you know."

"This crystal is yours, Milo."

Milo did not answer. He swallowed hard when he saw Kida getting into the water, ripples forming around her beautiful figure. When she got close to him, she stopped and took his hand in hers.

"Like I was saying" she whispered in his ear, "I don't think you're going to need your clothes right now. Let us dive together. I want you to show me what you discovered!"

Milo, smiling, nodded.

"Your wish is my command."

Later, they surfaced again and, this time, Kida allowed Milo to dress himself while she recovered her loincloth. The huntress sat down on the stairs leading to the pool and motioned to the scholar to do so as well. Milo obeyed and sat beside her. There was an awkward silence between the both of them. Finally, Milo gathered enough courage and will to speak.

"Kida, I am sorry for the way I behave in the throne room, I-

"No, Milo" she interrupted him, "You did nothing wrong. I am the one who should apologize. I beg your pardon for what I have said. It was very selfish."

"No, it wasn't! I mean, I know you only spoke those words because you felt down and lonely. And depressed."

"That is no excuse for having spoken to you like I did. You saved my city. You saved my people, and you saved me. And what did I do to show my gratitude? I let you down."

"I do not blame you, Kida. I would have reacted the same way if I had been in your position. Besides, I did not save your city all on my own, you know. In the end, you saved us all."

"What did you say your grandfather once told you about death?"

"Death is not extinguishing the light; it is putting out the lamp because the dawn has come."

"That is a wise saying."

Kida looked up in Milo's soft brown eyes and smiled. Gently, she rested her head on his shoulder and waited for him to return the embrace. As he wrapped his arms around her quilted figure, she silently vowed she could stay like this forever. After what seemed seconds to Kida – or was it hours? - Milo let go of her.

"You know, Kida, I have been thinking about something. I believe we should make sure Dr Sweet and the others won't say a word about the existence of Atlantis. Well, except for Mr Withmore."

"Why ?"

"Don't you get it? Rourke was the perfect example of what would happen if some other mercenaries learned about this city and its power. In the surface-world, greed and the hunger of power has corrupted mankind Atlantis must remain a secret, at least for now. I recommend you should give Dr Sweet, Vinny, Audrey, Cookie, Mrs Packard and Mole something to keep their mouths shut."

"Would gold suit them?"

"Oh, yeah, that would perfectly fit!"

"Then it is settled. I will give orders so they are rewarded for what they have done. I will grant each of them a crystal, too. What should I offer you, though?"

"Oh, do not worry about that, Kida. I don't want anything." he mouthed to her, "I have already been rewarded enough with having you by my side."

Kida smiled, but then remembered the fact he would leave Atlantis too, whether he was rewarded or not. Immediately, her smile faded and her expression turned to one of sadness. Milo, being perceptive, noticed it.

"Hey, Kida, what's the matter with you?"

"You and your friends can come back to Atlantis whenever you want. You will always be welcome here. I will order the Leviathan to consider you as Atlantean citizens."

"Oh. That _is_ very kind of you, Kida. I thank you for them. But who said I'd leave Atlantis?"

Kida felt her heart miss a beat.


	4. Galesh

Even though I do not own any original Atlantis characters, I do own Galesh Thanks for reading and reviewing!!

...

"What did you just say?"

"I asked who told you I was leaving Atlantis." Milo chuckled.

"You…You mean you wish to remain _here_?" Kida choked on the words. She could not believe this was true. It_ had_ to be a mistake! But the pleasant look on Milo's face told her otherwise.

"Yes", he answered, "I would love to stay in Atlantis. That is, if it doesn't bother you or any Atlantean!" he quickly added, feeling it would be an offence not to ask for her approval.

Although Kida was on the edge of beaming with joy, she felt concerned about Milo and the huge sacrifice he was about to make.

"But what about your family and your friends? They will worry so much! What about the ones who are eagerly waiting for you to return?"

Milo gave a little, bitter laugh.

"Family? What family? I don't have any family. My parents died when I was a little boy and my grandfather, Thaddeus Thatch – he's the one who raised me- passed away a couple of years ago. He was everything to me: he was both a grandfather and a friend, both a paternal figure and a confident brother. I miss him so much…" he finished in a barely audible whisper.

Kida knew Milo was on the verge of tears and kept quiet.

"As for friends, the only ones I've got are those who're going to leave Atlantis. Well, except for Mr Whitmore and Fluffy. I do believe Mr Whitmore will take good care of her. He'll understand and respect my decision. Anyway, nobody's waiting for me to return. Trust me, Kida; I will definitely not be missed up there."

"You're telling me that almost no one in your world cares for you?!"

"That would sound quite depressing but…yeah, close enough."

Kida gave Milo a look.

_How is it possible for a man like him to be that lonely? _

"You never answered my question, your highness. Does it bother you if I remain in your kingdom until my last breath?"

"Kwahm." she smiled, "Not at all."

"You're being serious?"

"Yes, as long as you call me Kida!"

They both burst out laughing. Once he managed to cool off a little, Milo stood up and he suddenly got so worked up he was almost bouncing up and down like a little boy. Kida smiled tenderly, knowing from this moment she had much, much more than a soft spot for him. As he began to stammer, Kida got to her feet as well.

"This is great!! I'll get the chance to learn everything about your world, your entire civilization!! Maybe I will even manage to help you discover hidden secrets, and re-build high technologies! And I will teach you and any other Atlantean how to read and write, and I-

"Shh, Milo" she whispered after having placed a finger on his lips. "We will have plenty of time to discuss this. For the time being, let us go back to the palace."

Kida leaned in, gave him a quick peck on his cheek and turned away, rushing towards the city, deliciously laughing. The scholar just stood there blushing, eyes wide, not moving a muscle and trying to register what had just happened.

_She kissed me. Grandpa, she __**kissed**__ me!!_

"Milo!! Are you going to strike roots? I'm waiting for you!" he heard her call.

"Sorry, Kida! I'm coming!"

…………………………………………………………………………………………

Milo and Kida were warmly greeted when they came back to the palace. The last members of the Ulysses Crew rushed over Milo and hugged him tightly – even Mole, much to Milo's despair. Atlantean warriors joined them and slapped the scholar on his back to congratulate him before bowing in front of him.

Kida's eyes widened at that sight, for she was aware of its symbolical meaning: Atlantean warriors only bowed to their ruler or to the one man they considered as the most valuable among _themselves_. Spotting a warrior she knew well, she called after him.

"Galesh! Please come over here."

The warrior turned around to see who had addressed him and immediately made his way towards Kida. Galesh was a young man (at least according to Atlantean criteria) she had known for a long time indeed. When both were adolescents, Kida had prevented Galesh from dying during the hunt. The scar he had got that day on his throat had remained, barely hidden by his cerulean tattoo. Since that crucial moment in his life, he had sworn eternal loyalty to the Atlantean princess and committed himself to protect her.

Once he was close enough, Galesh kneeled with great devotion in front of her, head bowed and eyes closed in respect. While his right fist remained over his heart, his left hand hold firmly his spear which he had laid on the ground beside him, and the sharp hook of which pointed behind him, thus clearly showing its aim was not Atlantean royalty.

Although he was not the mightiest warrior of the city, his precious ability to analyse dangerous situations, his slender, agile yet powerful body mixed with his kind soul made him an efficient guard and a good friend to hang on with. Galesh was probably the one man in Atlantis – well, except for Milo - Kida knew she could trust blindly, for he was truly plain-dealing.

"Galesh, I would like you to answer some questions of mine." Kida explained.

"As my Queen commands."

Kida froze. It was the first time ever she was being addressed as Queen, though she had not been crowned yet. She did not like it, but knew she had to go along with it.

"Queen Kidagakash", Galesh said, "Are you feeling all right?"

"Yes…Yes, Galesh, I am just a little tired. Please tell me: what did Milo do to deserve such respect from you warriors?"

"He led the battle against those damned outsiders, my Queen." Galesh responded, sounding a little surprised at Kida's question. "He explained us how to awake the Ketaks and the others vehicles of our armada. Most of all, he's the one who fought the evil outsider called Rourke. The one who killed our king. May his Spirit bond with ours forever. Not to mention Milo Thatch saved you."

_Milo's the one who fought against Rourke? Tahbtoap, __thank you for having trust him._

"Don't you remember anything?" Galesh inquired.

"Kwahm. I don't remember. I wouldn't have asked if I did."

"I am sorry. I forgot my place."

"It is all right, Galesh. Thank you. You may withdraw and enjoy yourself now."

The young warrior smiled to his Queen and nodded before retiring. Kida looked around, trying to find the scholar.

"Tienes una problema, Kida?" asked an amused voice.

Kida turned to see Audrey Ramirez.

"You're the one who takes care of the machines you travelled with, aren't you?"

"Claro que si! I am the best when it comes to mechanic work! Anyway…Milo told me he would be staying here in Atlantis."

"Teeg. Yes, he is."

"Why do you believe he's staying?"

"He says nobody's waiting for him in his world. And that he's the only one who can help us restore our culture to greatness."

Audrey smirked.

"Pues, I think he forgot to mention something."

"What?"

"Never mind. If you are looking for him, he's gone into the room your people prepared for him. Said he was exhausted beyond words."

"I…thank you."

Kida ran once more, heading for Milo's room.

"Ninguna problema, Kida." Audrey replied in a murmur, though Kida could not hear her anyway. "Take good care of him."

……………………………………………………………………………………………….

When Kida entered his room, barely lit, she found Milo removing his shirt and stretching.

"Milo." She called softly, not wanting to startle him. Which failed, for the cartographer had already jumped into the air and fallen on the rocky floor.

"Not again!" he complained.

Kida quickly helped him to his feet but was panic-stricken when she heard him groan in pain.

"Milo! Are you all right?"

"I guess I am. I suppose this is an aftertaste of fighting physically against Rourke." He laughed.

It was then Kida noticed the numerous bruises on Milo's chest.

"Here, let me help you."

While erasing the pain he was experiencing with her crystal, Kida slowly put her face close to his. Milo could feel he was blushing furiously but decided to ignore it for once and bent so his forehead was touching hers. No words were spoken, neither when he felt her body rise and brush against his nor when her lips touched the corner of his mouth. Both closed their eyes. Kida marvelled at the feeling of his breath caressing her lips like a silken breeze and prepared herself to savour their first kiss, when…

"Queen Kidagakash!" someone called from outside.

Kida's eyes fluttered open, only to find Milo had already moved away. She watched as he crawled into bed, obviously tired.

"Queen Kidagakash! The carvers say they require your advice for King Kashekim's stone." the same voice called again, and she recognized it as Galesh's. Silently cursing him, she turned around and reluctantly answered.

"I am coming, Galesh. Just a moment."

Heading at a quick pace for the door, Kida stopped suddenly to glance at Milo. A tender smile crossed her face when she realized he had already blissfully sunk into the world of dreams. She almost felt the urge to awaken him again, for her own night was far from being over.


	5. Until we meet again

Until we meet again

When Kida awoke that morning, it was to the sound of agitated voices and bangs against her door. Sighing, she reluctantly left the silken sheets she was wrapped in and put her street clothes on.

"Can't they handle things by themselves?!" she groaned.

Once she was ready, she opened her door to find half a dozen people waiting for her, strange looks over their faces. Among them stood Galesh. All of them bowed in respect to their ruler.

"What's going on here?" Kida inquired with dangerously flashing eyes.

"My Queen", Galesh shyly answered, "please forgive us. We were worried something had happened to you."

"What? Why would have anything happened to me?"

"You said you wanted to bid the outsiders goodbye before they left. They are ready and we thought you were-"

"They are ready? How late is it, Galesh?"

"Most of your people already had their lunch."

"Great Kings! Where's Milo? Did someone warn him, too?"

"No, my Queen. He's probably still sleeping."

"Well, go, wake him and bring him to me, Galesh. Quicky!"

There was no need for Galesh to hear it twice. He turned round, raced through the numerous corridors of the palace and did not slow down before he was inches away from Milo's front door. Knowing he would have to face Kida's fury if he wasn't quick enough, Galesh did not even bother to knock on the door. He simply opened it and entered. The room was still dark for the curtains did not allow the Crystal's bright light to enter it. Galesh draw them brutally, letting beams of light flash in. The young warrior spotted the still sleeping scholar in his bed and shouted his name twice, but Milo did not make the slightest move. Sighing in frustration, Galesh put his hands around Milo's shoulders and shook him violently. This time, the young cartographer indeed woke up.

"Whoa!! Hey, stop this!! Hands off!!"

"I am sorry, Milo Thatch, for having awoken you in such a rude way, but the Queen requires your presence at her side as quickly as possible."

"What the hell are you…" Milo stuttered, not fully aware of the situation, "Wait! You say Kida's waiting for me?"

"Yes. Queen Kidagakash is expecting you so you can say goodbye to your companions before they leave Atlantis."

"Jiminy Christmas!"

Milo jumped out of bed, fell awkwardly a couple of times and got dressed as fast as he could, for the Atlantean warrior who had awoken him kept stamping his foot in impatience.

"What's your name, anyway?"

"My name's Galesh."

"That's much easier to remember than Kidagakash!" Milo joked.

Galesh smiled. He appreciated the scholar's attitude and understood why Kida cared for him. He wasn't sure whether the two of them had told each other about their feelings. Supposing they had not, Galesh knew it wouldn't be long before they did. Though he felt somewhat sad for himself - he had loved Kida for a long time but figured out she would never love him in return – he wanted the best for his Queen. Milo had played by the rules, thus had deserved his respect. Plus, Galesh was happy Kida considered him as a close friend.

"Kidagakash is not a name that hard to remember.", the warrior replied.

"You can talk! You've known her for what, eight thousand years?"

"More or less. The point is you just said Kidagakash correctly."

"Well, I…Hey, that's true!"

"If you are ready, we should hurry now. The Queen and your companions must be waiting."

"Yeah, you're right."

The two men dashed outside. While running, Milo thought of what had nearly happened the previous evening.

_She almost kissed me. No, that's not right. __We__ almost kissed. Before that damned voice called for her. That voice…Hey, wait a minute, Milo! What was it Kida said before she went away? Didn't she say "I am coming…Galesh."? Galesh! So he's the one…I remember seeing him during the battle against Rourke. He seems nice._

"We are there, Milo Thatch."

"What? Oh."

And Milo saw Audrey, Vinny, Sweet, Mrs Packard, Cookie, a hole that had to be Mole, an Atlantean man and Kida talking together. Around them, waterfalls were roaring like thunder, and a huge Atlantean vessel that looked like a narwhal was apparently waiting to fly away. At the bottom of it, Atlanteans had gathered a whole heap of gold and were loading it into the vessel. They all turned round when they heard the two men approach. Kida smiled and walked away from the group to meet them.

"Thank you, Galesh. You did well." she addressed the warrior.

"I am at your service, Queen Kidagakash."

"I have one more favour to ask you, my friend. Could you please make sure Milo's given some clean clothes when we come back to the palace?"

Galesh giggled, imagining how the scholar would look like in Atlantean clothes.

"Teeg! Of course, your majesty. I'm on my way."

Yet the warrior took the time to bid the outsiders farewell and to thank them one last time before they left. He then began to run back but stopped when he heard Milo's voice. The linguist caught up with him.

"Thank you, Galesh."

"You're most welcome."

"May I consider you as a friend?" Milo asked.

"Teeg."

And Galesh disappeared in the distance. Kida reached for Milo's hand, just to make sure he had not changed his mind.

"Did you sleep well, Milo?"

"Yeah, just like a log."

"You're still staying, aren't you?"

"You bet!"

Milo grinned broadly. He noticed each member of the Ulysses had a crystal hanging around their neck. Each of them, except Vinny. Milo briefly wondered why but Kida showed him she had two more crystals in her hand, yet to be given.

The huntress and the cartographer joined their friends. Vinny bowed in front of Kida so she could slip on a crystal round his neck.

"Atlantis will honour your names forever. I only wish there was more we could do for you."

"Eh, you know, thanks anyway, but, uh, I think we're good." Vinny politely replied, glancing over his shoulder to the amount of gold which was waiting for them.

"They'll take you as far as the surface" Milo intervened.

Once everyone had said goodbye to Milo and Kida, and after the last picture had been shot, Milo whispered in Kida's ear, wanting to know why she still had another piece of crystal.

"I figured out you'd like to send one to Mr. Whitmore." She answered, her eyes shining with happiness.

Milo was taken aback. How could he forget Mr. Whitmore?! The linguist quickly took the precious picture he had cautiously kept out of his pocket and one of the pens he had came to Atlantis with. He did not even had to think about the words he should write, for he knew what his Grandpa would have had written. Kida watched in silence Milo's hand holding the strange instrument he wrote with and made a mental note to ask him to teach her how to read and write as soon as possible. Once he finished, she asked him what the words meant.

"Dear Mr. Whitmore, I hope this piece of proof is enough for you. It sure convinced me! Thanks from both of us. Milo Thatch." He answered, his voice shaking a little. Milo left the picture and the crystal it contained in Dr. Sweet's care. By the time the narwhal-looking vessel rose in the air, Kida and Milo waved their hands.

"Goodbye, you guys!! Until me meet again!" Milo shouted happily. And though they could not hear him, he knew they thought the very same thing. His heart was nearly exploding with delight. He had found all he could have ever hoped for: Atlantis, of course, but he had also found true friends, the satisfaction of having achieved his grandfather's dream and of having not failed Mr. Whitmore's trust; he had found a place to live happily and where he could be useful. He had also found himself, somehow. And, above all, he had found Kida.

"Well, this is it. They're gone."

"You will miss them, Milo-toap." Kida stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Yeah, I suppose I will. Hey, how did you just call me?"

Kida smirked mischievously.

"I called you by your name, Milo-toap." She repeated.

"Doesn't the word "toap" mean something like "dear" in Atlantean?"

"Is that a question or a claim?"

"Uh…"

But Milo never got the chance to answer something smarter. Next thing he knew, Kida had wrapped her arms around his neck and was kissing him passionately. Milo even believed he could feel her laughing into his mouth. The kiss did not last at all, and Kida pulled back extremely slowly. She kept her lips close to his, looking like a little girl very proud of herself for having made the best joke ever.

"Kida." was the only thing he managed to say.

"Teeg, Milo?"

"It's an endless mystery."

"What?"

"Never mind."

And he kissed her back, holding her waist firmly. He lost all sense of reality, intoxicated by the feeling of her lips against his. None experience in his entire life could even compare to that precise moment. Kida could not remember the last time she had felt this blissful. Though the loss of her beloved father still made her heart contract painfully, the very same heart of hers was sending countless waves of intense joy each time it was beating beneath her skin.

But the time came when the two of them needed to breathe again. None dared to speak. Milo lifted his hand to caress her cheek, and she couldn't help but giggle at the way he was blushing.

"I looked forward to this since yesterday night." she quietly conceded to him.

"So did I. Kida, I have something on my mind I wish to talk you about."

"Please do."

"Before your father died, when he gave me his crystal, he – he said the burden that was his had fallen to me instead of you. But you're here, alive and well. Does that still apply to me?"

"Teeg. You have been chosen by the King to become the next King of Atlantis."

"But I'm- I'm only a linguist, a cartographer! And you're royal blood! How can I possibly make a good king?"

"Milo, you are better than that! Besides, I love you, and I'm going to be there to help you. I am scared too I might not be a good Queen. But we have to face this together. There are certain conditions, though, that must be fulfilled."

"What would those be?"

"First of all", Kida explained after having kissed him lightly, "you have to become Atlantean."


	6. The Trials

I am more than happy to know I have finally finished this chapter!! I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! In the first place, I wanted to finish with a cliff-hanger and describe one Trial at a time, but I did not have the heart to! ^^ Although I do finish this chapter with a short cliff-hanger. Please R&R! Oh yeah, and this chapter is dedicated to Atlandim and AurouraandRosalieWannabe. ;-)

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Two days later, Kida was crowned and received the royal tattoos which indicated it to whoever would ever dare to doubt it. Out of tradition, the new Queen of Atlantis promised her people that her reign would be one of love and justice. It had been a glorious day for all Atlanteans who had already nicknamed their ruler "The Queen Who Discovered". They did not, on purpose, precisely tell what she had discovered, for there was no single answer. Milo had watched the coronation with great pride and love for Kida. He had seen the way she had not allowed her eyes to cry. He had heard her voice weep, though. She had been a complex, breathing paradox: overwhelmed by countless emotions which had kept beating against each other, she had smiled while her eyes had narrowed with anger and pain, she had clenched her teeth, had pulled a face when the crown- so light, and yet so heavy- had brushed against her forehead, but her body had not moved, completely at ease. Or so it appeared. Milo had scarcely noticed the tiny shiver which had run through her body, covered by her magnificent royal dress. On the one hand, the soft fabric she wore was decent and hid perfectly her beautiful figure. On the other hand, and Milo had briefly wondered how it was possible, the dress shamelessly _revealed_ every curve, from her waist to her thighs, not to mention her hips, every time she was moving, as if the fabric itself wanted its royal bearer to be admired as much for her rank as for her beauty.

But the one thing Milo would never forget about Kida's coronation was the way she had looked at him. He had read so many things in her sparkling eyes he was not sure he would be able to remember all of them. But he understood she had been searching for his help and love; she had silently asked him to share the responsibilities she had taken on with her. Milo had smiled reassuringly, and it was so he knew for once and for all that his destiny was linked to Kida's forever.

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When Milo had asked Kida what he would have to do to become Atlantean, she had answered with a riddle. She had only said he would have to undergo several trials which would put to the test the different constituents he was made of. Whenever he tried to learn more about it, she would change subjects after having told him not to be afraid, for she was sure he would succeed brilliantly.

"Tradition states you must not know what you will have to face before you actually face it, because if you knew it before, your answer would be biased. The trials you will undergo must enable anyone who looks at you to see you."

Those were the only clues he had. Pacing up and down in his room, from which he was not allowed to come out, Milo kept repeating Kida's words to himself, trying to figure out their hidden meaning. He had not seen the Queen this morning, which didn't help him to soothe himself. Milo knew the trials – whatever they were- would take place this day, and he did not feel like he was ready to face them. Indeed, mere seconds mater, three loud knocks echoed in his room and through his mind. The scholar took a deep breath, dried his sweaty hands on his toga and opened his door. There stood three Atlantean warriors. Galesh was one of them.

"Who are you?" Galesh demanded in a very solemn voice.

Milo instantly knew the ceremony had begun. The warrior's strange question proved it, almost as much as his attitude: no emotions were readable on Galesh's face. Milo was silent for a few moments, reflecting on what he should say.

"I am a Candidate." He finally answered.

Nodding in approval, Galesh ordered Milo to follow him in silence. The warriors led the scholar through countless and strangely deserted corridors. No one but them seemed to be there; the only audible sound was the echo of their regular steps onto the rocky floor.

Once they got in front of a tiny door, ornamented with the Atlantean "A" symbol, they stopped. Galesh used his crystal to open it and stepped aside, motioning for Milo to enter.

The scholar glanced hesitantly to the open door and the room it guarded before he stepped in. Nothing could be seen but complete darkness, and the young man was more than happy to have his crystal shining around his neck. The room was the tiniest he had ever seen: its ceiling was high above his head, but its walls just imprisoned him. He could not walk in there. He could only stand, or sit if he managed to draw his legs close to his chest. Turning around with a questioning look over his face, Milo gasped when he saw Galesh closing the door again but he did not try to escape. The scholar stood motionless for a minute. He had not expected things to rush like this and, above all, he did not know what was expected of him. Completely alone, he knew deep in his mind that the moment he was living was unique, and thus he prepared himself to live it as intensely as possible. Milo quickly lost the track of Time and gave up trying to determine for how long he had been within those four dark walls. He understood why he was being kept there in the dark, surrounded by an oppressive silence. The reason was reflection; and Milo soon found himself being lost in a profound reflection of the meaning of elapsing time, of life and death, until he came to a single conclusion: becoming Atlantean, in his case, meant being reborn.

The door was opened once again, and Milo's eyes were almost stabbed by the dazzling light in which he suddenly bathed. The same three warriors stood in front of him. Galesh stepped forward and placed his right hand over Milo's left shoulder.

"What do you seek?" he asked the cartographer.

Milo did not quite know how he knew them, but he instantly spoke the right words.

"I seek the Light."

"Have you strengthened your soul in the loneliness of this place?"

"…Yes."

_The __ritual actually forces me to lie. I have done nothing but anguish in this damn place. Or have I really fortified my soul? The ritual has to be learned, but it also has to be understood. I cannot answer negatively._

Galesh smiled. Silently, he reached out for Milo's toga and removed the upper part of it, leaving the scholar bare-chested. The young warrior also took the scholar's crystal away from him and handed it with the silken fabric to one of the two others warriors who stood beside him.

"Bring those to Queen Kidagakash, Melkim." Galesh ordered.

The warrior called Melkim immediately obeyed and disappeared in the distance. Galesh stepped back, letting the last warrior come close to the scholar. He held a black headband and carefully blindfolded Milo.

"Then, you can follow me, Candidate."

Milo recognized Galesh's voice; he let the warrior take his arm guide him to wherever they were going. None of them spoke. They walked for what seemed like an eternity to Milo, and finally stopped. Milo heard water streaming somewhere and felt warm sand beneath his bare feet. While he wondered where he could actually be, the headband which blindfolded him was removed, and the world suddenly came to life.

Milo gaped at what he saw. He stood in the middle of what looked like an arena, surrounded by countless rows of Atlanteans who stared at him with great interest, cheering and singing joyous songs. Suddenly, silent fell again upon the crowd. Milo turned round and saw her. Kida stood there, beautifully dressed. She wore neither her usual royal dress nor her crown. Instead, she sported a long, white dress, the bottom of which was ornamented with golden and dark blue designs. A golden belt rounded her waist, and the white silken fabric was slit on both sides, revealing Kida's legs, which displayed golden greaves upon which the Atlantean "A" was carved. The Queen of Atlantis also wore a crimson cape, kept in position by a golden pectoral. And, of course, she wore her own piece of crystal. Her long white hair danced with the soft breeze that was blowing, and all the love in the world was in her smile.

"Milo James Thatch, Saviour of this city and Atlantean Candidate, you claim you have strengthened your soul during the First Trial. Now the People of Atlantis must determine whether you are worthy enough or not to become part of it. The Second and Third Trials will take place immediately. May the Kings of our past lend you their strength and wisdom."

Milo could feel his heart beating faster and faster. He smiled back to Kida and waited for the second trial to begin. But nothing happened. Not fully understanding, the scholar turned to face Galesh but, surprisingly enough, it was not Galesh he was suddenly facing. Instead of the slender young warrior, there was another Atlantean. A true colossus. He gave Milo an Atlantean spear, stepped back, lifted in the air a small calabash filled with some yellowish liquid and took a sip from it. He handed the calabash to Milo and waited for him to drink too. The scholar reluctantly obeyed, but the moment he tasted the liquid, he spat it all out. The crowd gasped in horror.

"Alcohol! Why is it always alcohol? I never drink alcohol!" he complained, just like the way he had complained on Mr Whitmore's boat after having vomited his lunch. But then, he noticed the awkward silence which had fallen upon the arena and instantly knew he had committed a terrible mistake. The colossus now seemed very, _very_ cross with him. Milo briefly imagined what he would look like if that brute hit him just once and quickly pushed the thought aside.

"You have insulted him!" Galesh's voice called.

"What shall I do now?" Milo inquired with great anxiety.

"You have to fight him, I'm afraid."

"_Fight_ him?!? Did you look at _me_??? How can I possibly fight him?!?"

"First, you have to apologize by drinking in honour of him. Then, find his weakness and beat him."

Milo gulped. Frantically looking around, he caught a glimpse of an Atlantean animal. Whatever it was, it had to be a female, for it was suckling its offspring. Milo suddenly had an idea. Smiling broadly, he raced towards the animal after having grabbed hold of an empty calabash. Carefully, he milked the animal and drank.

"Okay", Milo yelled to the Atlantean colossus, "I have apologised. I am an outsider and I have respected your custom. I hereby demand that you respect my custom in return! It is the following one: each time I will stop to drink, you will have to stop too and drink from your own calabash. Kidagakash, Queen of Atlantis, do you grant me that favour?"

"I do."

And the fight began. The colossus charged Milo like a bull, and had he not stepped aside at the last second, the poor scholar would have been purely crushed. Milo wasn't a warrior, and could not enable himself being stricken by that brute, for he would instantly be knocked out if I did. Yet, Milo was faster and the fight soon turned into a chase. Several times, Milo heard Galesh yelling that this was not how Atlanteans fought, and the scholar responded that he wasn't Atlantean yet, thus had the right to follow his own technique.

Every time he was on the edge of being hit, Milo managed to get close to his calabash and drank. Keeping his promise, the Atlantean colossus always had to withdraw in order to drink the yellowish alcohol from his own recipient. Kida quickly understood Milo's strategy and could not help but giggle.

_Very clever, Milo-toap. You will make a great king indeed._

The colossus started to fumble over the arena, completely drunk, and the time soon came when he wasn't capable anymore to aim his strikes correctly. Milo dodged each hit with increasing facility and prepared himself to strike back. Running away one last time, the scholar drove the hook of his spear in the ground and, whirling, used the handle like a pole. Bending under his weight, the spear gave him the opportunity to gather both speed and strength. When his feet hit the colossus's chin, Milo knew he had given the coup de grace. The Atlantean brute heavily fell on the ground, knocked out.

"And now", Milo yelled, "I think the supremacy of milk over alcohol has been proven!!"

The crowd burst into laughter. Galesh rushed towards Milo to congratulate him.

"Yahd-la-Go-Nikh! You did it, Milo! You have passed the Second Trial!!"

"Yeah, well…I suppose I have" he weakly laughed, shivering nervously.

Milo looked around him. No matter the direction he looked in, he saw countless smiles, smiles meant for him and only him. He felt such an elation he even feared his heart would stop. And it nearly stopped when he saw Kida coming to him. He did not know at all if he was allowed to do this, but he couldn't care less. He reached for the Queen's hand and held it tightly in his own. She did not withdraw. She smiled and quickly whispered into his ear.

"I am so proud of you, Milo-toap. You're almost there."

"Will the last trial be a fight, too?"

"Kwahm. The worst is over, love. The last Trial you will succeed easily if you truly reveal yourself."

Milo felt his heart melt. He would have wanted to hold her in her arms, to kiss her, but knew this was not the right time.

"Later. I would like too." She softly stated, as if she had read his thoughts.

"I love you, Kida."

But the Queen did not have the chance to tell him she loved him too, for the last Trial was about to begin. She resumed her place, looking forward to Milo's final success.

An old Atlantean woman, carried by Melkim, entered the arena and was given a seat beneath the shelter of some trees. The crowd was silent again, but it wasn't a fearful silence. It was a silence full of respect and admiration.

Milo figured out the old woman was probably some kind of Atlantean shaman. Her skin displayed complex tattoos all over her arms, hands and face. She radiated knowledge, wisdom, and myth. She was a mystery herself, for a face was like carved into a neutral expression, which gave no indication about the way she felt. And when she spoke, her voice was harsh, yet soft.

_A complete paradox._

"Milo James Thatch, Saviour of this city and Atlantean Candidate, the Light you seek is almost yours. The first Trial put your soul at test, the second one your body and your ability to react in dangerous situations. You shall now undergo the Trial of the Heart and reveal yourself. Listen carefully, Seeker of the Light, and answer truthfully."

"I am ready."

"It is everywhere but you can't touch it. You possess it, yet it possesses you. If, unfortunately, you lose it, you are doomed to watch your own end."

Milo thought for a second. The riddle could have many, numerous answers. Countless _right _answers.

_Yet, I am supposed to give one answer. I have to make up my mind. But how can I __choose? Freedom, love, friendship, generosity, tolerance…All these are perfectly acceptable answers! What did Kida say?_ _The trials must enable anyone who looks at me to see me. To see me…To see the __**true**__ me! The only answer I can give is the one __**I **__believe the most in! _

"My answer is Wisdom."

"Then, Seeker of the Light, listen carefully to my second question and answer truthfully. What makes a man the greatest of all men?"

_Yes! This is it! Again, there is no single answer to her question. What makes a man the greatest of all men? The greatest of all men was,__ and still is, for __**me**__, Grandpa._

"A man becomes the greatest of all men when he is ready to kneel in front of a child to help him find his own pace."

"Then, Seeker of the Light, listen carefully to my last question and answer truthfully. What is the greatest mystery of life?"

_The greatest mystery of life? __There are so many mysteries, yet to be understood, explained. I do not know all the mysteries of life, and I do not wish to know them. If I knew all of life's mysteries, there would be no point in living any more. I am myself a perpetual mystery, which is called life. Yet, I can explain life. So…_

"Love. Love is an endless mystery, and the greatest of all mysteries, for it has nothing else to explain it."

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Author's note: I own Melkim's name (he's not that important but still). But "Love is an endless mystery for it has nothing else to explain it" is a quotation by Rabindranath Tagore and I do not own it, of course.

Finally, I have drawn the clothes Kida is wearing in this chapter. If you would like to take a look at it, please go to deviantart and browse my gallery. I am "Bintavivi" there. Keywords that can be used are : Atlantis, Queen Kida, Milo, ...


	7. Atlantean

For a few moments, nothing could be heard within the Atlantean arena but a perfect, smooth silence. Kida was beaming with pride, joy and love. Milo had understood the true meaning of the Trials; he had accepted to reveal himself, to share his true inner being with every citizen of Atlantis. The Queen stared at Milo, noticing something different about him. The way he stood, particularly. He was not trembling, looking calm and proud. A soft breeze caused his dirty blonde hair to dance graciously, along with his loincloth. She could see his shoulders rise with every breath he took, waiting for the Atlanteans to make their final Decision. Kida looked down at her feet, where Melkim had laid Milo's crystal and the upper-part of his toga, and smiled knowingly. The deep silence was finally broken by a powerful voice coming from within the crowd.

"Welcome, Milo Thatch, Seeker of the Light! May the Kings of our Past always watch over you! Welcome, Brother!"

Then, it all happened at once. The arena came to life, exploding in cheers, crying out Milo's name, repeating the very same sentence, welcoming him, accepting him. Milo could not put words on what he was feeling at that precise moment; ecstasy would have been an understatement. He let his tears run free down his cheeks, and he could have sworn those tears were the most perfect reflection of his soul. Atlanteans had judged him worthy enough to become one of them. He looked all around him, and no matter in what direction he let his gaze fall, he always saw countless smiles. Still bare-chested, Milo could feel his heart pounding hard under his chest, hammering faster and faster, swelling with delight and pure elation. He wanted to yell his happiness to the entire world, yet the lump in his throat prevented him from doing so. Then, Milo's chocolate-brown eyes met _hers_. Kida had the broadest smile of all upon her face. She motioned for Galesh to grab the cloth and crystal which had been previously taken from the scholar and began to walk towards him. Again, silence fell upon the arena, but enthusiastic murmurs could still be heard.

When Milo faced the Queen of Atlantis, he fell to his knees, out of relief and extreme exhaustion, both physically and psychologically. He felt Kida's soft hands caress his shoulders while she crouched down to his level. She lifted his chin to make him look at her.

"Do not fear, Brother, for you have successfully passed the Trials every Atlantean citizen has to face. What you have just lived, we have all lived it before you, and we share your emotion. You are undressed and without jewellery to signify both your innocence and the fact that a true Atlantean never surrenders to opprobrium and dishonour. Brother, this is the symbol of a new life, since you will now receive your first tattoo. You are for us a newborn man, a man who comes to us, stripped of everything human arrogance might have created, because we are born equal. Because gold, jewellery and clothes are only a way to hide our vices, and because the good heart of man must never be judged upon its finery or its outward appearance but always upon its actions."

Milo could only nod and stare at Kida's beautiful face. The Queen of Atlantis helped him to his feet. Before he could react, she had wrapped the upper-part of his toga around his chest. Smiling warmly, she took his hand in hers and led him towards the eastern part of the arena, where a table had been dressed. Three scrolls were set on it, each of them displaying a different tattoo design. The first scroll represented a simple star. The second scroll represented two stars intertwined. And the last scroll represented the same two stars, except they were outlined by a larger circle.

"The people of Atlantis have decided to let you bear one of these three possible tattoos. You have to choose one of them." Kida explained.

"What's the difference between them?"

"The place where they will be applied on your skin. And their symbolical meanings are slightly different, too."

"Oh. And what would those be?"

"I am afraid you have to choose before you know them."

"Okay. Well then…I would like _this one_." Milo told her, indicating the design displayed by the last scroll. "Yeah, that one sounds good."

"Very well. Shehan, you know what you have to do." Kida exclaimed to another Atlantean.

Shehan was the Master Designer of Atlantis. He was the one man who had marked King Kashekim Nedahk, his wife and their daughter Kidagakash with his needle. Shehan was the most respected and trusted designer of Atlantis. Now it was Milo's turn to make his reputation increase once more. Bowing to his Queen in approval, Shehan made Milo sit beside him and sterilized his needle by heating it with fire. The scholar winced at the pain when the needle entered his skin, but he was soon relieved to find Shehan was healing it with his crystal at the same time. And when the process was finished, Milo could only stare at the result on his left shoulder, half-bewildered.

"Well, I must say this particular design suits you very well, Milo Thatch." Shehan admitted, obviously pleased with his work. And Kida immediately nodded in agreement, before she spoke again, her voice more solemn than ever, while she held Milo's hands tightly in hers.

"Brother, you may now know the implications held by the tattoo you have chosen to bear. The two stars basically symbolize knowledge and wisdom. The circle around them means hope and love. It is the Light you seek, the Light you have chosen to bear close to your heart, and the Light according to which you have entered the Atlantean community. Follow me."

And Kida led Milo towards the middle of the arena, where a white, linen sheet had been set by four women. It was ornamented with the "A" Atlantean symbol. The breeze caused the sheet to swell slightly, as if it wanted to soar high above the city but the four women, who stood at each corner of it, made it impossible. The simple contact of the linen fabric with his bare feet brought an incredible feeling of comfort and softness to Milo. Kida made him stop walking: the scholar now stood at the very middle of the "King's eye". He noticed Galesh had followed them onto the linen sheet; the warrior still held the crystal King Kashekim Nedack had given Milo. Kida's gaze came to rest on the crowd gathered in the arena. Silently she lifted her right hand and, her voice loud and clear, spoke.

"Is there Peace?" she demanded.

"There is Peace!" answered the crowd with one and only voice.

"Then, we will proceed."

Kida put her right hand upon Milo's chest, so she could feel his heartbeat under her palm. She hummed a small laugh when she realized his heart had started to accelerate his pace the second she had laid her hand upon it. Truly moved by this purely physical demonstration of love, she caressed his skin with her thumb, though nobody but the both of them could notice it. The four Atlantean women stepped forward before they spoke in one voice.

"Milo James Thatch, it is in the name of the Kings of our Past that we hereby ask you if, once you are granted the life source power of Atlantis, you will use it exclusively to do what would appear to you as the true Good?"

Milo swallowed hard, suddenly afraid of what he should say, but the brush of Kida's thumb over his heart calmed him down again. He wanted to give the most sincere answer he could think of.

"With all my heart, I swear I will endeavour to do so."

"Do you promise to remember you will have the absolute duty to serve as an example to anyone who shall be entrusted to your care?"

"I promise it", Milo answered, while the furtive image of Thaddeus Thatch briefly haunted him again, as if to seal his oath.

"Do you promise to keep and safeguard preciously the sacred power which will be conferred to you?"

"I promise it."

"Do you promise that you will always be ready to grant your help to those who ask for it to achieve an honourable goal?"

"I promise it."

"May our Ancestors protect you, beloved Brother, and may they fortify you in your dignity."

Kida let go of Milo and motioned for Galesh to give her the crystal he was still holding. The warrior handed the necklace to his Queen with a reverent bow and stepped aside. Kida took the precious shard of crystal and turned around to face Milo. Slowly, she brought the crystal to her lips, whispered what seemed like a prayer, and her hands suddenly glowed with the same cerulean bright light, just like the way they had glowed when she had healed him in the caves.

"I, Kidagakash Nedahk, daughter of King Kashekim Nedahk and Queen of Atlantis, declare that Milo James Thatch, Atlantean Candidate, Saviour of this city and Seeker of the Light, has proven himself a noble man and has thus become a Brother to all Atlanteans. Look, people of Atlantis, look to your new Brother, for he has been marked like all of us."

Milo, half-dazed, did not fully understand what happened after. He only felt Kida's hands slipping the crystal around his neck. Then, she placed her right hand over his heart, her left hand over his forehead. The scholar noticed his crystal glowing brighter and brighter, he felt Kida's hands – which were still glowing too – getting warmer, until they became almost burning hot. And suddenly, he felt like he was loosing conscience. He saw a garish, plain blue light, not only in front of him, but all around him, creeping into the slightest part of his spirit. Then, nothing. A complete, dark void. It had only lasted for a mere second, but when he regained consciousness, Milo knew he wasn't the same man anymore. Kida had changed something within him. She had opened a door, broken a barrier. He felt like his five senses had acquired a superior degree of conscience. He was filled with a strong, new, bright energy, which did not weaken. Which would never weaken again. When he finally came back to his senses, he understood he now shared a soul-to-soul bond with the Crystal, like every Atlantean did. But the one thing that mattered most was Kida, who held him in her arms and shouted one last time.

"Milo James Thatch, Saviour of this city and Seeker of the Light, Brother to all Atlanteans, welcome home! Let us rejoice in your honour!"

It did not take a long time indeed before Milo and Kida got carried away by the crowd. That night, in Atlantis, every man, woman and child celebrated the arrival of a new Atlantean among them. That evening, rumours spread. They said the Queen of Atlantis and Milo Thatch had managed to escape all the attention and disappear into the night thanks to a young warrior's help, for they had much to tell each other.


	8. Memories

Author's note: Hi everyone! I have finally found both the time and the inspiration to continue this story. ^^ This chapter is shorter than the others, but I hope that you will appreciate it. Reviews are welcome! ;-)

Milo and Kida wandered hand in hand for a long time, not saying a word, simply enjoying each other's company. Galesh had very tactfully left them the moment the three of them were sure they were alone, near Kida's secret spot. Milo was not quite sure why, but he felt as if the warrior had had no intention at all to remain with him and Kida. Though he was sure Galesh appreciated him, Milo did recognize the look of a man who felt lonely. Loneliness was no stranger to the scholar. He remembered all those years that he had passed alone in America, where nobody had paid the slightest attention to him. Well, some people actually _had_ pay attention to him, but he had later figured out that they had done it merely because he could serve their interests.

He remembered a cold morning in particular, back in the winter of 1905, when he had looked at his face in the mirror. There had been a power cut for some odd reason in his neighbourhood and he had awoken, freezing, in complete darkness. The cold cruelly crept in his rundown flat. His cat Fluffy had spent the whole night by his side, lying peacefully round his neck like a scarf and providing her human companion with the warmth of her soft fur. She had obviously not appreciated it when Milo had removed her from his body to put her aside and had violently hissed in demonstration. The linguist had then walked onto the wooden floor to face his window and take a look outside, but all he had been able to see was an incredible thick fog. Trembling violently, feverish, Milo had gone into his small bathroom, bent over the washbasin and splashed some cold water on his pale face. His whole body had become tense when the cold drops had travelled down his neck and chest. He had then laid his eyes on his twin in the mirror and exhaled deeply. His breath had fogged up the glass and all Milo had seen in his reflection was a stranger, a stranger who looked indeed like him but whose eyes were rooted in sadness and silence. He had run his hand along his three days' stubble on his chin and studied thoughtfully the tiny and almost invisible crack that had appeared in his pupil. It had been four days since Lisa McGrath had revealed herself. Four days since he had understood she had never loved him. Four days that had made him sank into a deep depression. Tears had fallen. Again. And again. And again.

"Milo? Milo!" Kida's voice cut through his thoughts, jolting him awake from his daydreams.

"Um…sorry." He apologised softly, somewhat ashamed to realize he had not heard a single word of what she had just said. "I guess I got a little carried away."

"Way away, from what I have seen" Kida corrected humorously. "Why do you look so sad?"

"What? I don't-

Kida folded her arms indignantly and cocked her head.

"Oh, right, you got me." Milo confessed after having sighed deeply.

"Tell me, then. Are you not happy to have become an Atlantean?"

"No…" Milo whispered, then suddenly realised what he was implying and began to stammer nervously. "No, no I didn't mean it like that! I meant no, I meant yes!"

Kida laughed, and the graceful notes rose in the air, harmonious sounds that did not match Milo's countenance.

"Now did you mean yes or no?" Kida asked ironically, yet her smile was gentle, amused and indulgent.

"Well, I…"

"Let's try this again. Are you not happy to have become an Atlantean?"

"Of course I am happy to be Atlantean! Of course I am."

"Then what is it that weighs so heavy on your spirit?"

"Bad memories."

"Why?"

"What, 'why'?"

"Why are you thinking of bad memories?"

"It's just that I believe I have seen something in Galesh's face that I have more than once seen on my own. I think Galesh feels lonely."

"Lonely? Galesh? Milo, I have known Galesh for many centuries and I can tell you, he's certainly not alone! He's got many friends, and I am no exception. Don't worry about him, he's fine. Besides, he likes you very much."

"So do I. That's precisely why I do not want to hurt him."

"What on earth makes you think you'd hurt him?"

"I don't know. I just don't know."

"Then do not dwell on the thought. You are both good men, and you appreciate each other; I don't see how any of you could possibly hurt the other. Do you want to tell me about those bad memories?"

Milo looked at the Queen of Atlantis and briefly wondered how it was possible for him to have such a wonderful person to care for him so. The scholar took her hand and squeezed it gently while his smile spread again on his face, all traces of worry gone away.

"Actually, I'd rather create happy memories with you. Memories I can later remember blissfully. Better still, memories we can remember together, if that's okay."

Kida's expression of worry melted to one of deep love and all thoughts of Galesh vanished in thin air when they embraced under the protecting shelter of listening trees and murmuring water.

[…]

Galesh ran faster and faster, tears streaming violently down his tanned face. His heart was so heavy, so swollen with sorrow that he wanted to rip it out of his muscular chest. Always bouncing further thanks to his trusted spear, rage and despair bestowing his arms with an outstanding force he himself did not know he had, the warrior soon found himself wrapped in the smooth darkness of the caves that surrounded Atlantis. Coming there whenever his mask of happiness was too heavy to bear had become a centuries-long habit. Galesh allowed himself to slow down and walked aimlessly for a long time, not even caring to pay the slightest attention to the sharpen rocks that scorched his feet mercilessly.

_Kida-toap…Why, my princess? Why have you never seen my feelings for you? Why have you not even considered the possibility that I could have fallen in love with you? Why is Milo the one you have chosen? Why?_

Why. The one question that tortured Galesh day and night. The warrior fell to his knees and wept. Slowly, he touched the scar on his throat with his fingertips. Confident in the darkness, he noticed his breathing becoming hoarse, and feeling anger overwhelming him as violently as the Mebel-moak, he grasped his spear and planted it brutally, its hook raping the cool earth.

Galesh shouted the question to the darkness.

"_I can help you, if you want me to." _The Darkness responded.

Galesh jumped to his feet, his five senses instantly alert, ready to face and defeat his enemy. But none could be seen.

"Who is here? Come and face me, you coward!"

"_You are calling me a coward when you are not even capable to tell the woman you love how you feel about her. Is this your definition of courage?" _The Darkness snickered.

Galesh froze and looked to his feet, crushed by a gigantic wave of shame and dishonour.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"_Who I am does not matter. What I want is revenge. And you want it too."_

"No! I do not seek any revenge!"

"_Then what are you doing here, crying like a child, cursing yourself for having always been the good friend instead of the caring lover and speaking to a dark void? I can help you. You just have to ask."_

"You know what it is that I ask!"

"_If you would like to have your wish, then give me mine."_

"What is it that you ask?"

"_Being free."_


	9. Rebirth

Galesh closed his eyelids. What was it that was creeping into him? What was he doing here? Why? Why. The Darkness was right. He had loved Kida for almost all his life and never had enough courage to tell her about his feelings. Yet again, Kida did not love him. Why should he have bothered to tell her?

"_Stop being such a coward. Help me, and I shall help you." _The Darkness whispered suavely.

The wind travelled further in the caves, transforming itself into a cold blade of air that did not stop before it stabbed the warrior's back in a desperate attempt to save him. Galesh turned round, ignoring the shiver that had just pierced his body. Atlantis was there, behind the caves he thought of as a refuge. His shard of crystal shone brightly. Atlantis was his home. Atlantis was his life.

"_Atlantis betrayed you." _The Darkness pointed out.

Galesh tried to turn a deaf ear. Where and when had he heard this voice before? He failed to remember. Atlantis was his essence. Atlantis was his fate. What fate? Atlantis was his loneliness. Atlantis was his revenge. Atlantis was his doom. Galesh turned his head to take a look at his spear which was still planted in the ground. Reaching out, he seized the handle and violently pulled his weapon out. He knew what he had to do. He ran, gathering speed, and started bouncing within the womb of the caves, heading for its very heart. The volcano was not far away.

[…]

Kida entered her bedroom and closed the beautifully-carved pair of doors that led to her bathroom behind her. Turning round, she paused for a moment and leaned her back against them. Closing her eyes, she slowly brushed her right forefinger against her lips. Letting out a contented sigh, she smiled broadly. Though doubts had entered her mind when she had been crowned a few days ago, there were several facts she knew did not need to be discussed. First of all, a bath truly was a most agreeable remedy when the need to relax made itself known. Secondly, Milo could say whatever he wanted to, she knew deep inside her he would make an outstanding king. Thirdly, he was indeed a very good kisser.

Kida shook her head slowly, though her smile did not fade, and opened her eyes again. She was not sure when she had actually fell in love with Milo. If Galesh had told her, two or three centuries ago, she would end up head over heels in love with a bookworm scholar who came from the surface-world, she would have laughed in his face. Walking at a slow pace towards her bed, the Queen of Atlantis remembered what Milo had said during the final Trial. 'Love is an endless mystery, for it has nothing else to explain it'. Milo was right. Kida could not explain why she had felt that drawn to him from the very moment she had fist laid her eyes on him. She had only felt, back then, that he was something she had waited all of her life to happen. When he had finally solved the mystery the ancient underwater murals beheld, she could have kissed him out of sheer gratitude. It had been incredibly hard for her, then, to accept his departure. Even when Rourke had insinuated that it was Milo who had knowingly guided him to the 'treasure chest', she had seen through his lies. Her new friend could not have been aware of Rourke's plans; Milo was far too good-hearted. King Kashekim Nedakh himself had put all his faith in the scholar. Kida suddenly wondered if her beloved father had guessed what the feelings she was developing for Milo were when he had placed the burden of royalty upon his shoulders. The Queen slid under the fresh linen covers and rested her head on her pillow. Unconsciously, she raised her right hand to clutch onto her crystal, the pure blue light hiding into her palms while her eyes stared at the ceiling.

Milo had officially become an Atlantean citizen, which meant that the first condition for him to ascend the throne was fulfilled. The thought of the second condition made Kida blush slightly. Catching a small laugh with her hand, she asked herself whether Milo had guessed or not what the second condition was. She decided he probably had, but needed time. Besides, her eyelids decided on their own accord that it was no time to think anymore and Kida soon fell to sleep. Her smile did not leave her lips. It should have.

[…]

Galesh had entered the volcano. After its last eruption, it had gone to sleep again. There were almost no chances at all it would threaten Atlantis again. The warrior found it strange to be back in this place after the battle that had taken place there. It all seemed so quiet. Something within him was urging him to leave the caves as quick as possible, but the more he tried to listen to it, the more his feet led him away from Atlantis.

"_You are almost there, my friend. Continue. I shall soon grant you your wish."_ The Darkness encouraged him softly. Galesh did not even know where the voice came from. There was silence everywhere. How could he even hear it, when there was no sound audible?

"_I do not need you to use your ears to make myself heard." _The Darkness explained. Galesh could have sworn the Darkness was smirking, assuming it could have a face.

The warrior continued to walk until he could distinguish a strange light coming from the inside of the solidified magma. Galesh raised his spear and planted it a dozen times to dislocate the hardened surface, creating an ever-growing cut. When it became large enough, the warrior kneeled, inserted his strong fingers in the crack and moved the rock face apart. A single piece of sharp glass that had been crystallized appeared, and what looked like scarlet rocky veins went right though its dark blue sparkle.

"_Take it. Free me." _The Darkness murmured, clearly enthusiastic.

"How?"

"_Take it."_

Galesh obeyed; he carefully seized the strange piece of glass and caressed it with his fingertips. Nothing happened.

"And now?"

"_Touch it with your crystal. Then I shall be free. Then I shall help you."_

Galesh hesitated. Something was terribly wrong. He could feel it.

"_What are you afraid of? I only wish to help you."_

Galesh did not respond. Instead, he brought his shard of crystal close to the piece of glass. He vaguely noticed his hands were trembling. He felt like he could hear a million voices, distant voices, voices that breathlessly advised him to stop right now and run away. He stared intensely at the piece of glass and its shimmering veins. Time no longer mattered. Time no longer existed.

"_NOW!!!_" The Darkness yelled.

Startled, Galesh cut himself with the piece of glass. Blood flew from his palm. Galesh reacted instantly, not even giving it a second thought; he brought his hand to his crystal to heal his wound. The crystal touched the glass, and it was too late. Galesh's eyes widened in pure terror. Only then did he realise what he had done. In his mind, the Darkness laughed sinisterly, louder and louder, until Galesh could finally figure out where he had heard that voice before.

_The outsider!! The Evil One!! How did Milo call him? How did Milo call him?!? Spirits of Atlantis, forgive me, I beg of you! Forgive me! Forgive me…_

Tears of sorrow and regret escaped the warrior's eyes. But it was too late. Galesh suddenly screamed in pain. Never before had he experienced such a torture. His crystal had turned ruby red. He was lying on the ground, strangely huddled, his knees drawn up, clutching his head as hard as he could while the essence of Rourke took possession of him, corrupting his soul. The next moment, everything stopped. The pain, the convulsions, the scream, the tears. None of them existed anymore. The warrior stood up silently and looked down at his chest. His pendant had regained its blue colour, but scarlet veins had appeared. The piece of glass had shattered into dust. The warrior burst into laughter, feeling more powerful than ever. There was no more Darkness. There was no more Galesh. There was only Rourke into Galesh's body. Galesh was gone. Rourke smirked and headed fervently for the city of Atlantis, knowing he would be there before the dawn.

[…]

"GALESH!"

Milo sat upright in his bed with inhuman speed, breathing heavily and sweating, completely disoriented. He reached out to seize his glasses and put them on his nose. It took him a little time before his eyes adjusted to the dim light of his bedroom. Running his hand through his hair, he tried to remember the nightmare that had just jolted him awake. Something was wrong. The previous day had been back-breaking for sure, considering the Trials he had had to go through, but it had been wonderful beyond measure too. Kida and him had spent a delightful evening together, and he had gone to bed blissfully happy, not wanting anything but to dream about the woman he considered as his soul mate.

Though he _had _dreamt about Kida –his face flushed at the thought- Milo could not help but wonder why he had had a nightmare about Galesh. In spite of what Kida had told him before, Milo decided something had to be wrong with the Atlantean young man. Jumping to his feet, he noticed he was still wearing his toga, and ran out of his room to find Galesh. He did not notice, however, that it was only the early morning. The royal guards gave him strange looks as he passed by them, but he paid no attention to them. He had already lived long enough in Atlantis to find his way without difficulty in the palace. When he arrived near the Royal Quarters, he was tempted to look for Kida but finally decided that it was no use to bother her with a problem he thought he could solve alone. Milo made his way out of the palace. He knew all Atlantean warriors lived around it, so they could protect it at any moment. He walked in silence, his mind still racing, until he spotted the large warrior whom Galesh had called Melkim the previous day. The massive man was apparently training, executing complex movements with his spear.

"Supuk, Melkim!" Milo greeted, grinning.

The warrior turned to face him and smiled when he saw the scholar.

"Supuk, Milo-toap! May the Spirits of Atlantis bless your day as they have blessed you, Brother."

"And the same to you. I am sorry for the inconvenience. I mean, for disturbing you during your training, but I have a question I think you can answer for me."

"No trouble. What is your question?"

"Where does Galesh live?"

Melkim pointed his forefinger to the north.

"Galesh lives over there. The fourth dwelling-place on your left."

"Pagen! Thank you very much, Melkim!"

"The pleasure's mine, Milo. After all, I have nothing to refuse to my future king." Melkim added playfully, bowing slightly to the scholar.

"Well, uh…I guess I'll see you later. Thanks again!"

Milo dashed away. When he entered Galesh's dwelling-place, the fist thought that came to Milo was that it was very quiet. Too quiet. Lowering his gaze to the floor, the linguist spotted numerous bloodstains. Milo frowned his eyebrows.

"Galesh? Are you here? Galesh?" he called, suddenly very worried.

Milo hesitantly took a step forward, his senses alert. He did not appreciate the feeling of déjà vu. When he felt a blur behind his back, he whirled round and found himself facing a very angry Galesh who was covered in bruises and clutched his spear tightly. Though the look on the warrior's face worried Milo, he was relieved to find his friend there.

"Morning, Galesh. Why did you not respond? I was getting worried!"

There was no answer. Milo continued fondly, completely unaware of the danger that was hovering above him.

"Is it some kind of tradition in Atlantean culture to sneak behind people's backs to scare them to the death? Kida did the same thing before she gave me a tour of Atlantis." Milo laughed, smiling warmly.

Suddenly Milo felt as if his stomach had been torn in two and fell to his knees weakly. Blood sprang to his lips. Struggling to breathe, Milo tried to register what had just happened. Why had Galesh hit him? The scholar looked up. His eyes widened in fear, but he could not say anything, much less scream, for the blow he had just received had purely took his breath away. He could only watch as Galesh lifted his spear in the air, the sharp hook pointing behind him. When the stone that was attached to the end of the spear's handle as a counterbalance cleaved through the air, Milo noticed Galesh's crystal did not shine as it should have. Then, everything went black.


	10. Corruption

_Author's note: Sorry for the delay! With ;y journey to England and all the administrative crap that I had to deal with, I kinda forgot to write...Not to mention I had to deal with a problem of logic Atlandim is aware of! You may have noticed that I changed the rating of this story. For blood, mainly. Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy this...um...dark chapter. _

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Rourke beamed with intense joy when he saw Milo's body collapse on the floor. The large cut on the scholar's forehead was bleeding badly, and the former commander watched eagerly as each scarlet drop hit the ground, making the bloodstain spread wider. Rourke grinned sinisterly. How bloody stupid that Atlantean warrior had been! Believing that _him_, Lyle Rourke, would ever help him to conquer the princess's heart! It was a strange feeling, truly. If one man had ever told Rourke that he would one day be living within another's man body, he would have punched that man so hard that he wouldn't have been capable to remember his mother's name. And yet, here he was, controlling that Atlantean warrior's body from the inside, seeing through another's eyes, fighting with another's fists. Rourke had never, ever thought of himself as an artist and yet, there was something about his current situation that made him some kind of a puppet-master. Yes, Galesh was nothing more than a rag doll which he could control without anyone noticing and understanding what was going on. The most perfect disguise. Rourke chuckled and committed himself to tie Milo's wrists and ankles before he would regain consciousness.

While accomplishing his task, Rourke began to probe the depths of Galesh's memories. Within only a few seconds, the commander had learned everything about the Atlantean warrior's life. There was not a single secret that could have been kept hidden from him. Everything, absolutely every detail that constituted Galesh's life was now his property. Just then, Rourke noticed Milo's eyes were rolling under his eyelids, struggling to fill themselves with light, claiming to leave their shelter of skin. The commander took a step back and bent forward to grasp the spear he had dropped after having hit his enemy.

Milo finally opened his eyes to scan the place where he was, not fully understanding why everything seemed so blurred and distorted. Noticing that he was lying on the ground, he weakly tried to pull himself off the floor and, finding that he could not succeed in doing so for some mysterious reason, felt the strange need to readjust his glasses over his nose. But no matter how hard he tried, his hands did not seem to want to leave his back. And finally, it hit him. While remembering what had happened, Milo lifted his head to meet a most unfriendly vision.

"Galesh! What the hell…? What are you doing? Why did you hit me? Why did you tie me up? Why-

Milo instinctively let the next words die before they could leave his lips when he felt the spear's hook threaten his Adam apple.

"I am the one who asks questions here. I suggest you don't forget it. Understood?"

Milo nodded in response.

"Good. Now tell me, Milo: how much do you love Kida?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"I said: how much do you love Kida? Is there anything that you wouldn't do for her?"

"I would die for her if it was necessary!"

"Perfect. Well, I have good news for you: you won't have to die. Not for the moment, that is."

"I think I'd much more appreciate that piece of information if you could lower your spear."

"Hope keeps us going, eh?"

The words were spoken cruelly and sarcastically, and instead of lowering his weapon, Rourke pushed the blade against Milo's throat. A single drop of blood travelled swiftly along the metal, staining the spear's hook ruby red.

Milo gasped in terror.

"STOP THAT!! HAVE YOU GONE MAD, GALESH???"

"No. I am perfectly aware of what I am doing. And if I were you, I would not use that tone."

"You've really gone mad. Release me!"

"Do you think you are in position to give me orders?"

"…"

"There, you see you can be smart when you put your mind into it."

"What do you want?"

"I want to make you pay for what you've done to me."

"And may I ask what I've done?"

"You have stolen Kida from me. Kida was to be mine. And you had to come and ruin everything."

"What? You…love her?"

"It does not matter anymore. You will pay. She will pay. All Atlantis will pay."

"And all this…just to take revenge on one man?! You make me sick!"

"Don't worry; I'll make you more than sick."

Milo could not believe either his eyes or his ears. What on earth had happened to Galesh? The scholar's gaze drifted to the pendant that was sparkling around the warrior's neck. For the second time, Milo noticed the strange scarlet veins that ran through the normally all-blue shard.

_It is as if the crystal was…corrupted. _

Instinctively, Milo looked at his own shard of crystal and was relieved to find it unchanged.

"Fancy a new kind of crystal, Milo?"

"No thank you, I'm perfectly happy with mine."

"Old-fashioned."

"Pure."

"Weak. Completely out-of-place for a king-to-be like you, isn't it? Let me help you."

With that, the Atlantean warrior removed his pendant from his neck and seized Milo's, not bothering a bit about the fact that the latter might be strangled by the pressure. The scholar's eyes widened with each inch that brought the two shards nearer each other. And so, when the corrupted shard touched the pure one, a flagrant light exploded within Galesh's dwelling-place, and nothing could be heard but a cry of incredible pain.

When Milo opened his eyes again, he felt completely astonished by the sight that was before him. The blast had violently ejected Galesh against the opposite wall and the warrior struggled to stand up again. Breathing hard, his features contorted by rage and hatred, Galesh shot a murdering glare to Milo – whose recent wounds had been healed miraculously by the very same blast - and rushed to grab the scholar's toga, brutally lifting him up. Galesh's left hand suddenly left its right twin and coiled up around Milo's neck.

"WHAT HAPPENED?" the warrior roared.

"I…I don't know…"

"DO NOT LIE TO ME!!"

"No, really…I…do not…know." Milo whispered with great difficulty.

"HAVE A GUESS, THEN!"

"I would…if…you…could only…let me…breathe."

Rourke eyed up his enemy up and down before he eventually loosened his grip.

"The only thing I know is what Kida's father told me. _The crystal thrives on the collective emotions of all who came before us. In return, it provides power, longevity, protection._"

"Why did it hurt me and not you?"

"Can't you see the reason for yourself?"

"I suggest you avoid being insolent."

"Well, I'd say that it protected me because I'm the one who's trapped here in spite of the fact that I did nothing wrong. What did _you _do, Galesh?"

The only answer Milo got was a powerful punch into his stomach. The blow made him fall on his knees again.

"I said: I suggest you avoid being insolent. Now listen carefully, because I do not like to repeat myself. You will stay here, motionless and silent. Do I make myself clear?"

"With my wrists and ankles tied up, I wouldn't go very far even if I wanted to, would I?" Milo groaned.

This time, it was Galesh's foot that delivered the blow into the scholar's face. Milo's lips began to bleed again.

"Do I make myself clear?" the question cruelly echoed once more.

"Yes."

"Although I'm sure you're being honest, a smart man like you will certainly understand that I can't take any risks by giving you any chance."

"What?..."

And so, before Milo could yell, before he even realized what was going on and before he could look directly at the face of Death, Rourke had stabbed him. The pain that flashed within the scholar's chest was the sharpest that he had ever experienced. Disbelieving, Milo looked down at the blade that seemed to rape his heart and at the flowing river of blood that travelled down his torso, staining his toga with a soon-to-be-dead promise.

Rourke smiled with satisfaction and slowly removed the deadly weapon from the opened wound that would soon steal Milo's last breath. The warrior took one last look at his victim, torn his sash, kept one of the bloodstained pieces of fabric with him, then turned his back on him and walked towards the dwelling's threshold. Just as he was about to leave, he heard Milo's weak, trembling voice whispering something. Pricking up his ears, Rourke listened.

"Kida…Forgive me…Forgive me, my love. I don't understand…Galesh…"

Rourke closed his eyelids with pure delight and gave a small laugh.

"P. T. Barnum was really right." he murmured under his breath before he left and headed for the palace. He could not see it, but his words acted like an electric shock upon the dying scholar. How fast his brain worked at that precise moment, Milo would never even dare to imagine. But three things became suddenly very clear.

1: Galesh's crystal was somehow corrupted.

2: Galesh could not have known anything about P.T. Barnum.

3: The only common point between the fact that 'Galesh' wanted to take revenge, a corrupted crystal and P. T. Barnum was…

"He's not Galesh. He's Rourke."

And it was with that terrible conclusion that Milo's eyes closed themselves, leaving their owner sink and drown into the slow, dark, and yet welcoming, oblivion of death.

Into the palace, Kida was getting very worried. She had been looking for Milo in every place she thought he could be and still had not found him. A bad presentiment was starting to creep and invade her, and despite all her attempts to reject it and convince herself that she was being ridiculous, the feeling grew, pervading all happy thoughts, gorging itself on all the blissful memories that she cherished. Atlantis's queen was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even hear the heavy footsteps that came nearer and nearer. When she felt a strong hand seize her bare shoulder, she swiftly turned round with a gasp. Then, seeing who was responsible for startling her, she let out a sigh of relief.

"Galesh."

"I'm sorry. I did not mean to scare you, my queen."

"Do not worry about that. I should have heard you."

"If you have not, I dare say you are troubled."

"Indeed I am. Have you seen Milo? I just can't find him."

"That is precisely the reason why I came to see you. I was myself looking for him when I found this."

Pretending looking very worried, Rourke knelt before Kida and handed her the bloodstained piece of fabric that he had taken from the scholar's clothes. Kida seized it carefully with her fingertips and felt her heart stop, then miss several beats when she recognized the unique royal designs that made it clear the piece of fabric was indeed a part of Milo's toga.

"Where did you find this?" she demanded, and Rourke noticed with great satisfaction that her voice was shaking with anguish and fear.

"In the caves, my Queen."

"The caves? Why would Milo go to the caves?"

"I do not know, Queen Kidagakash, but we should hurry, for Milo must be wounded."

"Yes, you are right. Follow me!"

Kida ran outside the palace and ordered her soldiers to gather immediately at its entrance. Within a few minutes only, all Atlantean warriors were ready to obey any orders their queen would give them. All warriors, except one. Melkim was not there.

"Galesh has loyally come to warn me that our Brother Milo could not be found anywhere in Atlantis. We believe that he is currently in the caves. Divide yourself into four different groups and find him! I will lead the first group. May the Spirits of Atlantis watch over us!"

And so it was that Rourke, making a discreet exit, succeeded in creating one of the greatest diversion ever known in Atlantean history. For when all Atlantean warriors went away to look for Milo in a place where they would never, ever find him, the crystal was left unprotected.


	11. Hence the importance of a fishing net

**Author's note: Long time no seen! Anyone who has taken the time to read the last reviews I got for the previous chapter must have known that my life was seriously threatened, as well as Milo's! ^^ But I do hope this chapter will spare me. A little. As an apology for the delay, this chapter is approximatively 1000 words longer than usual ;-) And this chapter is dedicated to Julie Horwitz, who happens to know why. I love this chapter's title so much!! lol **

* * *

After having been warmly thanked by the Atlantean fishermen for his precious help, Melkim wandered around the market. He had promised his little daughter Shâalinikash to buy her a small tapestry representing a flying colony of parrot-lizards she could hang on the main wall of her bedroom. Melkim had wanted the tapestry to be special; so he had ordered it to be custom-made by Atlantis's best weaver Almaribekh. The market-place was as lively as always, and he took great pleasure in smelling the delicious spicy scents that told him squids were being spit-roasted nearby. He felt suddenly starving to death and his stomach immediately groaned in approval. Repairing the fishermen's biggest net had not been exactly his idea of fun. Chuckling, he walked towards the nearest food store where he was greeted by his friend Bolnemedachk. They talked for a few minutes before Melkim asked Bolnemedachk to give him a squid tentacle. Laughing, the latter went to his spits and selected the best food for his friend. When Melkim tried to pay him for his trouble, Bolnemedachk simply refused and offered him the tentacle for free as a thank you for having repaired the net. The warrior knew it would be useless to argue with Bolnemedachk and thus graciously accepted. The first bite tasted like heaven, and he closed his eyes to appreciate it completely.

"Looks like you needed it, my friend!" Bolnemedachk remarked humorously.

"You cannot even begin to imagine." Melkim replied, consciously chewing his food.

"Why are you here anyway? I mean, on the market-place."

"I came to see if the tapestry I've ordered is complete. By the way, since Almaribekh-toap is your wife, you wouldn't know if she's finished with it, would you?"

"Ah, yes, I remember her telling me she couldn't wait to show you her work". She's very proud of it." Bolnemedachk added with a smile.

"I have no doubt about it. Your wife is the best weaver I've known in many centuries. My little Shâalinikash-toap dreams of becoming as gifted as her!"

"I'm sure Almaribekh-toap would be delighted to have Shâalinikash-toap as her apprentice when she's a little older."

Bolnemedachk winked at Melkim, who smiled in return. There was a moment of silence while the massive warrior concentrated on his tentacle. After his friend had swallowed a few other exquisite bites, Bolnemedachk spoke again.

"So, Queen Kidagakash granted you the permission to stay here, then?"

Melkim instantly stopped eating and lifted his head to look at his friend.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, all the other warriors have been ordered to go into the caves with her. So, since you are here, I thought that she-

"Wait a second! The Queen gathered the warriors to go into the caves?"

"Teeg."

Melkim immediately dropped his tentacle.

"When did they leave?"

"Ten or fifteen minutes ago, I think."

"Yahd-la-Go-Nikh! I'm a dead man! I must hurry! Thank you for telling me!"

And the warrior began to run away in the direction of the newly-rebuild bridge that led outside the city, his friend's voice echoing in his ear.

"You're most welcome! I will tell Almaribekh-toap that you will come and collect the tapestry later!"

Suddenly, Melkim stopped dead in his tracks. He had forgotten to ask Bolnemedachk something. Something important. It was very unusual that all Atlantean warriors were gathered in the same place at the same time, especially in the caves. It could not be a hunt. Hunters did not need to be so numerous. There had to be a very special reason for that. Turning round, he ran as fast as possible back at the food store. He didn't bother to try to breathe normally and spoke hoarsely, lifting a hand to tell Bolnemedachk to be quiet.

"Why did Queen Kidagakash and the warrior go into the caves?"

"If I heard correctly, they are looking for Milo Thatch-toap."

"They're looking for Milo? But how do they know he's in the caves? There's no reason for him to go there, especially alone."

"Galesh said that Milo went there. He did not mention why, though."

"Galesh?"

"Yes, Galesh. And he proved it by giving Queen Kidigakash a torn and bloodstained piece of fabric he found in the caves. The fabric is a part of Milo's toga." Bolnemedachk added worriedly.

Melkim's eyes widened. Something was terribly wrong.

"But if Galesh had that piece of fabric…he could have found Milo himself. He could have done it." The warrior muttered under his breath, more for himself than for Bolnemedachk.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I saw Milo at dawn. He wanted to see Galesh. And I told him where Galesh's dwelling-place was…And you tell me that Galesh…So…"

Suddenly, Melkim slapped his forehead in sudden realization.

"Yahd-la-Go-Nikh! How could I be so stupid?!?"

And crushed by a wave of utter terror and horror, he dashed away in the opposite direction, not bothering about the numerous Atlanteans he bumped into during his furious race against Time. Somehow he heard Bolnemedachk yelling what on earth this was all about.

"Just pray the Spirits of Atlantis I won't be too late!!" Melkim yelled in response, heading for Galesh's dwelling-place, and completely terrified of what he would find there.

In the caves, none of the Queen's warriors was able to find any clue that could possibly lead them to the scholar. But they kept looking for him, and with each passing second, Kida's heart shattered a little more into pieces. At the very moment when she had wanted to talk to Galesh, she suddenly noticed the young warrior's absence. She knew it was strange, because he would normally never be far from her in those occasions, but she was too desperate, too worried to pay attention to it.

* * *

Rourke could not believe it had worked so easily. He snickered wickedly.

"Poor, poor Queen Kida. It is a shame I won't be there to see your face when you'll find that bloody bookworm's corpse. I think I would have enjoyed the scene. But don't worry: you won't have to wait for a very long time before you join him. Now, let's find your dear, dear Crystal."

Since Kida had gathered all her warriors, entering the palace had been a real walkover. And as Rourke arrived in front of the heavy pair of doors that led to the throne room, he noticed that the two guards who were usually standing there were missing too.

_Too bad, I won't even need to be 'persuasive'. What of bunch of idiots!_

Rourke entered the throne room and closed the doors behind him. He took a moment to appreciate the repairs that had taken place in there. More exactly, he appreciated the damage he would later make this place undergo. He noticed sarcastically that the Old King statue was still shedding tears.

_You cannot imagine how right you are._

His eyes alight in expectation, he walked towards the carved 'King's eye' on the ground and stood in the middle. The Crystal Chamber would soon be his. And then, nobody will be able to stop him and prevent him from tasting the sweet and delicious nectar of revenge.

* * *

Melkim crossed the threshold of Galesh's dwelling-place as fast as he could and felt his heart instantly stop at the sight in front of him. As he had expected it, but prayed for it not to be true, Milo was there, lying on the ground, motionless, his back against the wall, bathing in a pool of blood that had its source in a large cut on his chest. Judging upon his bloody right hand, Milo had apparently desperately tried to stop the bleeding by pressing on the wound as firmly as he could, given his state of weakness. But it had been useless. The cut was too deep. The scholar's eyes were closed.

"MILO!" Melkim cried, rushing to the young man's side. He noticed that blood was still escaping the corner of his mouth. Quickly, the warrior checked for a pulse, and neither heard nor felt one. Fighting his tears back, and cursing the lump that was forming itself in his throat, Melkim noticed that Milo's crystal had almost lost its light. In spite of the terrible context he was caught in, Melkim wondered what it meant. The crystals never lost their flagrance, even if their owners died. Why was the light of Milo's crystal fading? And then, an incredible hope invaded him.

_Would it be possible that…_

Gorging himself on this wild, almost inexistent piece of hope, Melkim took his own crystal, murmured a quick yet fervent prayer and began to heal Milo's body.

_Please, Spirits of Atlantis, please let him live. Our Queen needs him. We all need him. Spare his life; he is too precious for Atlantis. __Please, Spirits of Atlantis. Please._

* * *

Milo did not understand what was going on. Everything was black. Black as death. The comparison echoed in his mind and he wondered if he was dead. If he was, it was not as uncomfortable as he would have thought. True, there was darkness everywhere, but at least he did not feel any pain anymore. It felt like gently floating in the air. But if he wasn't dead, why couldn't he see anything? His five senses seemed to have been robbed by the overwhelming darkness. Now that's weird, Milo told himself. He tried to concentrate more and vaguely made out a tiny bluish light in the distance.

_Distance?__ What distance? There are no distances here. Everything is black._

Feeling drawn by the tiny sparkle, he tried to step closer to it, but immediately scorned at himself.

_Don't be stupid Milo; you cannot walk here. You cannot do anything. You're probably dead anyway._

But the light grew and began to shine brighter and brighter. Milo felt as if he was laughing, although he obviously couldn't since his senses had disappeared. But the thought seemed funny.

_So this is the light people pretend to see before they die. But then…if I see it, I'm not dead yet, right? So I shouldn't try to get closer to it. I am too tired to do it anyway._

But the light came closer itself. It came to him, creeping, stretching its shapeless arrows of light like a spider's web and he was the fly that would soon be glued into its flagrant trap. But he knew that fighting against it would only make it worse. So Milo, in the deepest depths of consciousness, remained motionless, patiently waiting for the light to engulf him and wolf him down between its fangless jaws.

_Oh, it doesn't matter anyway. __It does not hurt. I will die in peace. Well, if I'm really not dead yet. Maybe I'll see Grandpa soon. I can't wait to tell him I found Atlantis! Maybe he already knows it. But I will tell him nonetheless! About the Shepherd's Journal, Atlantis, the underwater murals Kida has shown me and…Kida!! Kida!_

Kida. The thought of her made Milo's conscience tremble with fear and shame.

_No! This isn't right! I cannot die now! I have so much to do in Atlantis! I have still so many wonderful moments to live! Kida! I want to share my life with her! I want to marry her, have kids with her and raise them with her! I cannot die now! This is not my Time! The Time hasn't come yet! __Kida! _

And the light spread always wider, and this time Milo tried to avoid it, to crawl back into darkness again, but the light was so much faster than him.

_No! I cannot die now! I'm sorry, Grandpa, but you will have to wait for me a little longer. I cannot leave Kida. Kida! _

The light finally reached him. And when it did, he struggled to free himself, only to find that he couldn't. And he felt pain. It hurt so much! Milo yelled, but no sound came out of his throat. His whole body tightly tied with light, burning him as if it was on fire, was torturing him. And there was a loud noise rising and surrounding him, too. It was a strange, loud hammering. It wasn't beautiful, and he did not want to listen to it. He remembered the smooth, gentle darkness that made him float, not feeling any pain, not hearing anything, and he so desperately wished to taste it again, even if it had not any taste. And that did the trick.

_Feeling? Feeling pain? Hearing __sound? But…Then, it means…Jiminy Christmas! _

And suddenly, Milo understood. The light that people saw when they died wasn't the light of Death. It was the complete opposite. It was the light of Life. And because they were told not to walk towards it, they lost themselves in the smooth, soft, welcoming darkness where no pain could be felt. And they died. Milo himself had not walked towards it, but he had let the light come towards him. He had not fled from pain, which meant he had not fled from Life. Indeed, his body was burning him violently, and the loud hammering noise he was hearing nearly drove him crazy, but it meant his senses had returned.

Consequently, Milo accepted it, and ceased to fight against it. And whilst he was being blinded by the implosion of pure bluish light that surrounded him and invaded him, he became conscious that the burning pain that tortured him was his breath. And the hammering noise was his heart that pounded fiercely, sending blood to his brain and his muscles, refusing to stop.

_Kida…_

And Milo decided to follow the light, to follow the pain. He decided to open his eyes. And strangely enough, the first thing he saw was an Atlantean warrior. His face seemed familiar. Milo tried to remember why. And when he did, he smiled weakly and let his first reborn breath escape both his lungs and his lips, ignoring the burning feeling.

"Melkim."

* * *

"MILO!!" Melkim yelled, disbelieving.

The young scholar was alive. It had taken a few minutes to heal his wounds with his crystal, and it had been far from easy. It had been strange too. From his point of view, Melkim could have sworn Milo had actually _wanted_ to die for a moment, as if he was fighting against life. The warrior would never know how right he was. He quickly pushed that thought aside and finally let his tears roll down his cheeks. He felt exhausted.

Milo tried to move, and could not bring himself to do so. It hurt too much. Sighing, he looked at Melkim, the man whom he knew to be his saviour, and was surprised to see him quietly sobbing, kneeling on the ground beside him. The warrior's massive body was shaking strangely, giving numerous starts. When Melkim lifted his head to look at him, Milo was even more surprised: he was laughing!

"I'm… sorry…Milo…" He spoke hoarsely through tears of intense relief. "I think…I just…cracked up."

Milo smiled in return at gave a weak laughter himself. It all felt so strange. He looked down at his shard of crystal. It shone both softly and brightly, and Milo pleasantly imagined that if the crystal had a face, it would be smiling by now.

"Yes, you can thank your crystal, Milo-toap!" Melkim's warm voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Why do you say that?"

"It seems that your shard, for some mysterious reason that you can't expect me to explain, 'decided' on its own accord to save you by literally giving you its power."

"What do you mean?"

"You were almost dead when I came in, Milo."

Milo vaguely noticed that a shiver ran through the warrior's body.

"And your shard of crystal was almost 'dead' too. I know it sounds strange. But its light was practically gone. Usually, crystals don't loose their inner light, even if their owners die. But yours acted differently. And when you came back to life, it began to shine again too."

"The Mother-Crystal has a conscience of its own…"Milo murmured.

"Yes. Anyway, Milo, what happened? Did Galesh tried to murder you?"

Melkim's words suddenly made Milo remember all the events that had happened previously. He gasped in terror.

"Melkim! Where is Kida? Is she safe? You have to tell me!"

"Calm down, Milo! You just escaped Death and you are already more worried for her than for yourself. Queen Kidagakash is safe and sound. She is looking for you. Everyone is looking for you…though they will certainly not find you where they think you are."

"What? Why do you say that? Where is she?"

"It's a long story. First, answer my question: is Galesh the one who tried to murder you?"

Milo sighed.

"Not exactly. It's a little – No, it's terribly complicated to explain but…I am sure that Galesh is not responsible for what he has done to me."

"What?? You're telling me that he tried to kill you but isn't responsible for it? Do you think I'm stupid? That bastard is going to pay!!"

"No! Listen to me, Melkim! Look, I owe you my life, and I will never be able to thank you enough, but please listen to me. Here's what happened…"

And when Milo had told Melkim everything he knew and everything he suspected, they both agreed that the first thing to do was to inform Kida and the other warriors. Melkim ordered Milo to stay there and to rest as long as possible for he was still weak, while he would ride a Martag and go fetch Kida and the other warriors.

Running through the market-place again, Melkim took the time to stop by Bolnemedachk's food store.

"Ah, you're there again. Will you explain me what was going on when you left like you did?"

"There's no time for explanations, Bolnemedachk!! Just go get a physician – no, don't interrupt me - and take him to Galesh's dwelling-place. Milo's in there. I must go and warn Queen Kida."

"But-

Melkim put his large hand on Bolnemedachk's shoulder and squeezed it gently.

"There's no time, my friend. Just carry on my instructions!"

As soon as his words left his mouth, the warrior ran away for the umpteenth time that day, heading for the caves. If Milo was right, every second counted.

* * *

**So...what did you think? =D Time to review!! And PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, take some time in your review to give me your opinion about the passage where Milo comes to life again. It took me an awful lot of time to write it and I would VERY MUCH appreciate to have some feedback on it. Thanks in advance!**


	12. In the Crystal Chamber

**Author's note: I am SO SORRY for the extremely long delay since I posted the previous chapter!!! But I was lacking inspiration, and when I did not lack it anymore, I just couldn't write my ideas down properly. But I am pleased to say that these problems are over for the time being, so here is the next chapter!! Enjoy your reading!! ****As for my usual musical suggestions, here you are:**

**1) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince OST: Track 1 (Opening), by Nicholas Hooper**

**2) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince OST: Track 2 (In Noctem), by Nicholas Hooper**

**3) Angels and Demons OST: Track 1 (160 BPM)****, by Hans Zimmer**

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* * *

  
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Kida was just about to order her men to gather around her so she could hear any possible report when the distant voice of a man, mingled with the particular buzz the flying vehicles of the Atlantean armada produced, made itself heard. She whirled round, trying to determine the direction where the noise came from. Her muscles were tensed because of her highly nervous state, so much so that the nerves in her back were hurting her. Until now, nobody had found any sign of Milo, and Kida was slowly beginning to loose hope. Mentally whipping herself for having dared to even think about giving up, Kida threw her shoulders back with dignity, a mask of determination carved on her anxious face. Eventually, the Queen of Atlantis could make out a figure in the dark, and she recognized it as a Martag flying at full speed, splitting the cold air of the caves.

"Queen Kida!"

The cry, hoarse and acutely anxious, did not inspire Kida with confidence. She just did not like the sound of it. Cursing herself violently for not having been able to succeed in finding Milo, she watched the Martag touch down with icy eyes. Her wrath made nothing but increase when she recognized Melkim. All of her warriors had been given the strict order to look for Milo! But Melkim didn't let her give free rein to her anger; he jumped down from the Martag, ran to where she was standing and nearly slipped when he fell to his knees before her. His breathing was spasmodic, and his torso was rising and lowering so fast it had to be painful.

"My Queen! I have found Milo!"

The words were spoken with such fervour that Kida felt her anger disappear, replaced by an intense feeling of relief and elation. Had the circumstances been any different, she could have flown into Melkim's arms out of sheer gratitude.

"Where is he, Melkim?"

"He's at Galesh's dwelling place."

"Wh-What?"

"Yes, my Queen. Galesh…Well, maybe not Galesh, but…Someone lied to you. Lied to all of us, and tried to murder Milo, who was scarcely alive when I found him."

Then, seeing the expression of utter horror on Kida's face, he quickly added Milo was now safe and sound. But the Queen heaved nonetheless, wanting nothing but to vomit the bloody pictures that pierced right through her brain. How could such a thing be possible? Galesh, one of her closest friends, trying to kill the man she loved? The shock that exploded into Kida's body was almost unbearable. She remembered Milo telling her that something was wrong with Galesh, and knew she would never, ever forgive herself for not having paid more attention to his words. From the corner of her eye, Kida noticed her warriors had gathered around her, worried looks on their faces. Immediately, she passed her troops in review and the only person she saw was precisely the one who was not there. Galesh glowed by his absence.

"WHERE IS HE?!? WHERE IS GALESH?!?" Kida roared, once again beside herself.

"My Queen, please listen to me!" Melkim pleaded, though worried the Queen might take it out on him.

"WHAT?"

"According to what Milo told me, though I find it very strange, Galesh is not directly responsible for what has happened. Milo said Galesh's crystal was shining differently than it had before, as if it was infected. Worse still, Galesh may be possessed by the spirit of the evil outsider we fought in the volcano."

The Queen's eyes widened while the warriors began to murmur around her. When realization dawned on her, Kida felt her heart miss a beat.

"A diversion…," she whispered, trying to imagine the consequences that might occur if Milo was right. "It was a diversion! Head back to Atlantis, all of you, do your duty and protect the city and the Crystal!!"

* * *

Milo, as soon as Melkim had left to warn Kida, had guessed the warrior would probably send someone to look after him, and had decided that there was no time for such a thing to happen. He had thus succeeded in standing up, but his whole body was still weak and he had lost much blood. He could only pray it wouldn't be too long until Kida and the other warriors arrive. But as long as they would not be there, it was his responsibility to make sure the Crystal was safe. He had made his way out of Galesh's dwelling place, tottering as if he had to learn to walk again, and after having glanced above his head, had been relieved to find the Crystal unharmed and still hovering peacefully above the city, though it had surprised him it wasn't already sending its red beams all over Atlantis. Still, that was good news, and since no one could be seen around the palace, it could only mean Galesh –or, more exactly, Rourke- had gone into the one place he thought still held the Heart of Atlantis: the Crystal Chamber.

Milo did not know how much time he had left. He tried to run, but his legs did not obey the order his brain sent. Consequently, he just walked as fast as he could, ignoring the fact he was dead-tired and that such tiredness made his body seem at least fifty pounds heavier, carefully avoiding the market-place so that no one would see him in such a state, for if they did, they would worry over him and Rourke would have a clear field to do whatever he was planning to do.

When Bolnemedachk and the physician he had brought with him arrived at Galesh's dwelling place, they were surprised to find it empty. Though there was still a large stain of blood on the floor, Milo was not there anymore. Alarmed, they followed the smaller bloodstains footprints which led them to the back door. Looking at each other for a second, they rushed through it and stopped dead in their tracks when they caught a glimpse of the scholar, way ahead of them, climbing with apparent difficulty the last stairs that led to the palace, falling to his knees every now and then. When he eventually managed to be on top of the stairs, he seemed to take a moment to breathe, and then he disappeared into the palace. Bolnemedachk did not hesitate for a second and ran after the scholar.

* * *

Rourke had entered the Crystal Chamber and had screamed, deadly energy flowing trough him and making the rocks shake around him. The Crystal was not there anymore. In his hatred and haste, he had forgotten to probe Galesh's memories regarding the place where the Heart of Atlantis was since, of course, he had assumed it had returned to its secret place after the Princess had been released from it. Deciding he should have known better than that, and having absolutely no idea about how he could leave the Chamber –the last time he had come down here, when the Princess had merged with the Crystal, he had had his mercenaries throw a rope through the 'King's eye' that had enabled everyone to get out- he began to climb. Rourke knew the ascension, no matter how fast he climbed, would make him loose a precious amount of time. Fortunately, Galesh's body was powerful enough to undergo without any difficulty such an exercise. Moreover, the warrior's spear made an excellent tool to lean on as soon as it was safely planted in one of the numerous interstices between the rocks. Rourke was about to climb up the last inches that separated him from the throne room's floor when he heard someone walking above him. Cursing himself, Rourke immediately decided that whoever the intruder was, he had less than a few minutes to live. As soon as he would be out of the Chamber, he would be as good as dead. Planting the spear one last time above his head, Rourke climbed on its handle. Being the soldier he was, he had to admit Atlantean spears were remarkably solid. Though the spear's handle did bend beneath his weight, it did not break, neither when he simply stood upon it nor when he used it to propel himself. Firmly grasping the floor's edge, he began to haul himself onto the throne room's rocky ground, but froze when he saw the person who had come in and who was standing over him.

"Thatch!! You're still alive?!"

"Yeah, sorry to disappoint you, Rourke."

"How did you?-"

"Next time, make sure I am really dead before talking about P.T. Barnum, you schmuck!!"

And Milo, who had patiently waited for his enemy to be in this particular position, gathered all the strength he had left and delivered a powerful kick into the warrior's face that made him loose his balance and begin to fall backwards into the Crystal Chamber again. Milo sighed, terribly tired, and turned round when, suddenly, he felt himself falling backwards too. Looking above his shoulder in horror, he saw a brown hand, Galesh's hand, that grasped his toga, and he had no strength anymore to resist it. He heard himself cry while he cleaved through the air in the arms of free fall, darkness surrounding the both of them. Rourke had let him go, and they were both falling rapidly, and the ground began to draw closer and closer, and Milo did not want to face death a second time but did not know what he could do to prevent it from happening. And time suddenly appeared to be passing so slowly, yet so fast…And then Milo's back hit a rock that deflected his body, and a few seconds later, all he could feel was the brutal shock when he collided with cold water. Because of the Crystal's absence in the Chamber, there was no way Milo could determine how deep he had fallen under the surface, and when he remembered telling Rourke and Helga –it seemed so long ago already- this was a bottomless pit of water, his lungs started to burn.

* * *

Kida flew at fast as she could on her Ketak, the entire armada behind her. She flew past the river of lava, above the bridge which reconstruction had begun a few days ago, and did not slow down until she could see the palace's gathering grounds. She had noticed, as had all the warriors, the unchanged Crystal that still floated calmly in the air. Though no one said it loudly, it was clear nobody understood why the Crystal did not feel the danger; why it was not even trying to protect its people against this new threat. But Kida did not dwell on the thought for a long time, as she spotted a man, standing at the palace's entrance, who agitated his arms in order to catch her attention. Swooping down on him like a raptor on its prey, she took a hairpin bend at the last second to avoid the collision, and knew when she recognized Bolnemedachk that she was about to hear yet another bad news.

"Queen Kida!! Milo has gone into the palace before we could catch up with him!! And I just heard two men screaming! I can swear it was Galesh's and Milo's voices!"

Kida did not need to hear it twice; ordering all warriors to wait there, at the ready, and motioning for Melkim to come with her, she flew into the palace, into the throne room, and once she spotted its entrance, into the Crystal Chamber. The Chamber was extremely dark and she had to land carefully before she jumped down the flying vehicle. Melkim followed her example, and then removed his shard of crystal from his neck and held it at arm's length to light his way. Together they saw Galesh's body lying, motionless, on the ground. Although Kida felt a sudden urge to tear him to pieces, she felt more concerned by the absence of another.

"Do you see Milo, Melkim?"

"No, Queen Kida. He's not over there…Maybe Bolnemedachk was wrong. Maybe it wasn't Milo's voice that he-

"Shh! Quiet!!," Kida ordered, her senses alert. A few seconds passed before she spoke again. "Have you heard that?"

"What?"

"This sound…," she explained, walking away of him and towards the pit of water. "It sounded like…bursting air…like…bubbles!"

"Bubbles?"

But before Melkim could register what his Queen's words meant, she had already dived into the cold water. Watching the last ripples disappear, the massive warrior turned just in time to take the full force of Galesh's head and shoulder into his stomach. Melkim doubled over in pain as the force of Galesh's blow pushed him into the stones. Brain managing to shake back into place, Melkim looked up and when he met Galesh's eyes, he knew Milo was right. His warrior instincts taking over, he stood up and fought back.

Deep under the surface, Kida kept swimming as fast as she could, centuries of underwater explorations having trained her body for such circumstances. But not Milo's. The bubbles that guided her into the depths of water were became smaller and smaller, and were almost invisible when Kida finally spotted the man she was looking for. Instinctively, she cried out his name, though he could not hear it, and immediately cursed herself for having lost bits of precious air. She swam closer to Milo, closer enough to see that he was struggling desperately so he would not drown; his hands were coiled around his own neck and his eyes closed in agony. She did not wait for him to notice her presence and, putting one of her arms around his back and under his arm, she forcefully kissed him to breathe air into him. His eyes suddenly opened while his brain felt awoken again, and as soon as she pulled back from him, he nodded as if to thank her. She motioned for him to follow her, he nodded again, and she pulled the both of them upwards.

When they broke the water's surface, breathing in as much air as their lungs could contain, Kida immediately flew herself into Milo's shivering arms, holding him tightly, their two crystals shining brightly, close to one another.

"I am sorry, Milo! I am so sorry…" she whispered, her face buried into his shoulder. He stroke her hair gently.

"Sorry? For what? Saving my life?"

She gave a weak laugh through was sounded like a sob, lifted her head and gazed into his eyes. He looked so tired. She cupped his face with her hands and gave him several light kisses, fervently whispering she loved him between each of them. Just when he was about to reply, Milo and Kida were violently distracted by a shrill cry of pain. They turned their heads and watched as Melkim fell to his knees, bleeding, and how he yelled out as Galesh touched the warrior's crystal with his own infected one. Both Milo and Kida cringed, knowing Melkim was suffering an unthinkable torture. And when Melkim stopped making any sound, when he stood up again at Galesh's side, they saw scarlet veins run through his crystal too.


	13. Destiny

**Author's note: Hi everyone! I'm happy to say that this chapter is finished, it really gave me trouble! Special thanks to Julie Horwitz for helping me find a way out and Stan4Us for the editing work. Many thanks to those who posted reviews I could not reply to since they were not logged in (Cabbage-Merchant in particular). Hope you will enjoy your reading!! Until the next chapter!!**

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Rourke smiled as he contemplated the look of utter horror on Milo and Kida's faces. Melkim would no longer be able to protect them. From now on, the Atlantean warrior would obey to his orders only. Now, thanks to the Ketak and the Martag, he now could easily make his way out of the Crystal Chamber. But, Rourke remembered, the rest of the Atlantean army was more than probably waiting outside for their Queen to return, ready to fight for her. As powerful as he was, Rourke knew he would not be able to face them all at the same time. He could as well give himself to the sharks. That path did not lead to the Crystal. The only solution to get close to it was to force Milo and Kida to obey him without the Atlantean army knowing it. Sighing in frustration and disdain, the former commander gazed at the scholar and the Queen who were still holding each other tightly into the cold water. According to what Rourke could see, it was obvious Kida was looking him up and down, her mind probably racing to figure out what she could do to stop him. But she also had to support a trembling Milo, who had no strength left, so he would not sink again. Rourke snickered; it would be extremely easy to tame Kida's furious temper for the time being. As long as Milo would be in such a state of weakness, she would not risk doing anything that might put her love into an even greater danger. Having made up his mind, Rourke put Galesh's knife into its sheath again.

"Come on, Queen Kida, get out of the water. We're running out of time."

"I won't let you hurt Milo again! Neither him nor my people!"

"Yes, yes, I know that. But if you stay into that damn pit of water, you're the one who will hurt your sweet love, little _Queen_. Look at him! He can barely keep his eyes open!"

Kida quickly glanced at Milo. It was true. If consciousness was a cliff, the young man looked like he was standing on its edge. It broke Kida's heart to see him in such a state, he who was normally so alive.

"Kida…", she heard him murmur.

"Yes?", she replied softly, feeling incredibly concerned.

"Do as he says. There's no other way. Do as he tells you."

The Queen bit her lower lip. She knew Milo was right, and from the corner of her eye she saw the satisfied smirk that spread on Galesh's face. An expression the true Galesh had never had. But surrendering to Rourke without even fighting him she considered almost like an act of cowardice of the highest order, something her pride could barely stand. And yet, she perfectly knew the choice wasn't hers to make.

"Very well." she reluctantly replied, and helped Milo to swim forwards.

"Smart lady." Was the reply she got from Rourke, and she gritted her teeth so she would not react to his words, her eyebrows so frowned that her pupils were almost invisible.

Once both Milo and she had finally gotten out of the water, Kida took a brief moment to breathe, but when she saw Melkim grab Milo's arm to pull him away from her, she stood up in rage and kicked the massive warrior into his groin as hard as she could. Melkim cried in pain while he released the scholar, who fell heavily upon the floor. Kida instantly stood both over and in front of him, protecting his shivering body with her own. Rourke stepped forward and lifted his hand, preventing Melkim from fighting the Queen back. The both of them defiantly peered at the other, a pure blue crystal challenging an infected one.

"Don't even try to touch Milo again!" She warned, snarling.

"I will not. For the time being, that is." Rourke replied.

"What have you done to Galesh?" she demanded. She had to know.

"Galesh? Oh, you mean the fool who lent me his body? Let's just say I can be very persuasive when I want to. You see, Queen Kida, as horrible as it sounds, love can so easily be turned into hatred."

"What do you mean?"

"Poor, poor Galesh was in love with you, little Queen. 'tis a shame you did not realize it. You have created your own destruction. It's funny how things work, isn't it?"

Kida's eyes widened. Galesh was in love with her? For how long had he been hiding his feelings? Why hadn't he said anything? Why hadn't she noticed it? Everything was her fault. Suddenly Kida felt a presence in her back and realized she had let her guard drop for a couple of seconds, but it had been enough. Melkim had walked behind her and he brutally seized her arms and twisted them in her back.

"LET ME GO!!!" Kida ordered, beside herself. But Melkim did not obey. He did not even reply. He only tightened his grip on her forearms, and then kicked Milo, who still lay on the ground, eyes closed but conscious, into his side. He heard the way Kida called his name, and it was only that which gave him enough will to bear the pain and to stand up again.

"Well, well, well. If this isn't Mr. Thatch, back from the land of the dead. I admit I am quite impressed by your strength."

"I hope you don't expect me to thank you for the compliment, Rourke."

"Shut up! Now you two listen to me! You are going to help me get out of this damn Chamber so I can have a closer look at your Crystal."

"NEVER!!" Kida and Milo replied with one voice.

Rourke instantly unsheathed Galesh's knife and put the blade against Milo's throat.

"No!" Kida cried.

"I am not taking no for an answer! This is an order, and you will carry it out whether you like it or not! We all know the rest of your men are waiting for you outside, little Queen, and I don't wish to waste any more time with them, if you get what I mean. Melkim, take her with you onto the Ketak. I'll keep Mr. Thatch right here with the Martag. One little attempt to stop me and your love will be dead meat. Do you understand me?"

"Don't listen to him, Kida! My life isn't worth all of Atlantis!" Milo interjected.

But Kida sadly shook her head.

"You are wrong, Milo. Even if I put my feelings for you aside, you are essential for Atlantis. You are this city's only hope to regain its greatness. Its future depends on you. I cannot risk that."

"But…"

"Very well, Rourke. We will do it your way."

"It is about time you realized it, little Queen!"

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At the palace's entrance, the remaining Atlantean warriors worriedly waited for their Queen to return. The tensed atmosphere did not help them to feel any better. And the Mother Crystal was still hovering peacefully above the city, its pure blue radiance undisturbed by the latest events. When they had heard Melkim yell out, some warriors had wanted to go into the Crystal Chamber themselves to help and possibly rescue both their fellow friend and their Queen, but others had reminded them it was the Queen's will for them to stay where they were. A heated argument, to say the very least, had followed, all warriors trying to convince each other what their duty truly was: wait and obey the Queen, or leap into action whatever the consequences for having disobeyed a royal order might be. Just when they were about to come to blows, they suddenly heard the inimitable buzz of two Atlantean flying vehicles. Turning round in anxious expectation, they gazed into the distance and let out cries of both incomprehension and joy when they spotted their Queen, Milo and Melkim with the traitor Galesh, and then wondered why the Queen had spared his miserable life. They watched the two vehicles land in silence, their blood boiling inside their veins. Kida jumped down the Ketak, Melkim following her immediately, his own knife at the ready behind her back, its sharp point threatening her sensitive skin. In the meantime, Rourke hypocritically helped Milo to descend the Martag they were riding, though not showing his knife was also ready to cut the fragile thread of Milo's life. Murmurs began to fill the air.

Kida gazed at the Mother Crystal, worried beyond one could imagine that it was still ignoring what was happening. Why had the Great Kings abandoned Atlantis? But she didn't have much time to think about any possible reason. She felt the knife pressing against her back and knew what Rourke expected of her. Trying to adopt the most positive tone she could think of in such a situation, she addressed her men.

"Thank you for your assistance. You can go home now. The problem has been solved. Galesh was indeed possessed by the spirit of the evil outsider you have fought against in the volcano. But thanks to Melkim and Milo, we were able to heal him. There is nothing to worry about anymore."

The warriors exchanged strange looks. Since when had Kida been so incomprehensively forgiving?

"But, Queen Kida!" one of them exclaimed, "you cannot let Galesh escape judgement like that. He tried to murder Milo!"

"I know, but he wasn't responsible for it."

"Would you have said that if Milo had really died?!?" another warrior added.

"This is not acceptable!! Galesh has to be punished for what he has done! You cannot let him go in peace!!"

"You will bring shame upon the honour of all Atlanteans if you don't punish him!!"

"You are our Queen!! Prove yourself worthy of that rank!"

Soon all warriors were violently claiming their disapproval, and it killed Kida to have to lie to them when she completely agreed with them. She glanced over at Milo who was giving her a desperate look. If only there was a way to make them all understand what the situation really was. But when she saw the glare Rourke was giving her, she immediately let a mask of fury disguise her true emotions.

"HOW DARE YOU QUESTION MY ORDERS?!? IF I SAY THAT GALESH IS INNOCENT, IT MEANS HE IS INNOCENT!! IF ANY OF YOU HAS ANYTHING TO RETORT, YOU CAN TAKE IT FROM ME THAT I AM GOING TO GIVE HIM A HARD TIME!! CONTINUE TO BEHAVE LIKE THAT AND I WILL ACCEPT NO FURTHER RESPONSIBILITY!! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR??"

Kida saw her warriors back away from her, and she hated herself for the words she had just uttered. As they bowed to her and asked for her forgiveness, her attention was caught by a cry of sheer elation that came from the great staircase that led to the palace.

"Tahbtoap!!! Tahbtoap!!!"

And then, to her horror, she saw Melkim's little daughter, Shâalinikash, running as fast as her legs would enable her, clutching against her heart what looked like a tapestry and laughing with the purest delight. Kida immediately looked at Milo, who had a terrified expression on his face. Not for him, but for what would happen to the innocent child who was unknowingly running into the merciless jaws of treachery, violence, deception and possibly death. Seconds suddenly became hours, and Kida's emotions turned into a tempest, and Milo tried to break free from Rourke's grasp in vain. In order to make the scholar understand that he'd better not try that again, Rourke seized Milo's right wrist in his back, put the blade into his palm and, with a lightning speed, used it to cut it. A searing pain shot through Milo's hand while he restrained himself so he would not make the slightest sound, his blood rapidly covering his palm, thick scarlet drops falling on the ground. He lifted his head up again to notice that Shâalinikash had almost reached them; still running and laughing, completely unaware of what was awaiting her, the child waved the tapestry in the air, calling "Tahbtoap!!! Tahbtoap!!!" over and over again, and the scholar thought this was the most terrifying scene he had ever witnessed. Cold sweat soaked his body. He could not let this happen. Neither could Kida. And then, as if it was just a scene they had rehearsed together a hundred times before, they both shouted in distress.

"NO!! STAY AWAY FROM HERE!!"

Kida immediately felt her hand bleed. Melkim had given her the same wound as Milo's. But what she had been hoping for had worked.

Shâalinikash had stopped dead in her tracks, nearly falling in the process, and could now only witness the scene that was before her. Why was Melkim, her cherished Tahbtoap, holding a knife against Queen Kida's throat? Why was his friend Galesh doing the same thing with the nice outsider Milo? The other warriors tried to intervene, but they could not do anything as long as the Queen's life was at stake. Shâal began to cry, contradictory emotions beating against each other, emotions she could not hold in. She dropped the extremely beautiful tapestry she had been given by Atlantis's Master Weaver, Almaribekh, as a birthday gift from her Tahbtoap, and it rose in the air, serenely floating, strangely carried by the soft breeze. Tears violently streaming down her cheeks and upon her tattoos, Shâal, as well as everyone else, watched it until it landed behind Milo's back. The soft, light fabric began to change. From white it turned to scarlet, bathing into a stain of blood, and the child's tears intensified.

The tapestry having attracted everyone's attention, Kida knew this was the only chance she would get. She placed her feet as if she wanted to jump in the air and her skull violently hit Melkim's chin. Not waiting for him to understand what was happening, she used her elbow to deliver a powerful blow into the warrior stomach and broke free from his grasp. Immediately, Kida's men circled Melkim to protect her.

"Don't let either Melkim or Galesh touch your shards of crystal with theirs!! You'd become a Corrupted too!" Kida informed her men, dashing towards Rourke to help Milo.

But Rourke seized the linguist by his neck and held him at arm's length. Kida stopped and motioned for her soldiers to do the same. Rourke laughed sinisterly while he stepped backwards until he was on the edge of the square so Milo was suspended in mid-air. The scholar looked down and he could only make out the ground far, far away. If Rourke dropped him now, it was certified death. Milo knew he had to gain time one way or another.

"Very well, Queen Kida! You've made your choice! Say goodbye to your love!"

"No! Wait!" Kida exclaimed.

"Is this going to become a regular habit? You know, threatening me to death?" Milo sarcastically remarked.

"Zip it, Thatch!!"

"What, I don't even get a last will?"

"No. But since I'm feeling generous today, have you got any last words?"

"As a matter of fact, I do."

"Then go ahead before it is too late, which means soon."

Rourke slightly shook the young linguist to underline his point. Ignoring it, Milo looked at Kida, who was standing only a few feet away from him, though it seemed to be so much farer. She was still using a stance he could only suppose was made for the hunt, and her eyes were staring desperately into his own. It was now or never. It was also the only way to determine whether Galesh could still be saved or not.

"Hey, Kida, will you marry me?"

Suddenly the heavy atmosphere disappeared and became unreal as everyone laughed nervously.

"What?!? You cannot be serious!"

"I'm very serious, Kida! Will you marry me?"

"By the First King, Milo, couldn't you have picked up a better timing?!?"

"Will you marry me?" Milo asked, persistent, for the third time.

After a moment of silence, Kida, who felt exasperated, thrilled, furious, fearful, determined and blissful at the same time, eventually replied.

"Yes, I will! If we ever survive this, I will marry you!"

Milo grinned from ear-to-ear, her answer having given him a wonderful and sudden burst of energy. But Rourke suddenly let him go without warning. A terrified expression replaced the elated one he had had on his face only a few seconds ago, and he closed his eyes, ready to meet his fate. But he did not. At the last second, someone's hand had grabbed his own. Still suspended in mid-air, he looked up to meet Kida's gaze. His right palm, still bleeding badly, was embracing Kida's left one which, he noticed, was bleeding too. Milo smiled, and then noticed a sudden change in the air. The Crystal was finally sending its red beams all over Atlantis. On the square's ground, Rourke had fallen to his knees, clutching both sides of his head. In his head, he could feel an extremely strange sensation. Galesh, or whatever was left of him, had heard the proposal, which had had the effect of an electric shock, and he was now trying to regain possession of his body and soul.

Kida finally managed to haul Milo back onto the ground, and they smiled at each other before leaning into a quick hug. The both of them watched as the red beams searched for a member of the Royal family to become a host, and Kida knew what she had to do. She smiled once again to Milo, kissed him lightly and stood up, ready to merge with the Crystal for yet another time. But as one beam fell on her, it remained red, as if it was hesitating. And then it went past her, ignoring her. Kida's eyes widened, and as she turned round to ask Milo what he thought was happening, she was left speechless and awestruck. There was only one single beam left. It was blue. And it had fallen upon Milo. She watched him, as he had watched her into the Crystal Chamber, being called by the Crystal, knowing he could not hear her anymore. His feet left the ground when his body was peacefully transported into the Crystal. But as he disappeared, the Crystal acted slightly differently than it had with her. Though the eleven Kings' Stones did revolve faster around the Sacred Crystal at first, they suddenly stopped and, in turn, each Stone turned over so that their carved side faced the Crystal.

The only thing Milo knew was what he had heard just before the beam had turned blue.

"_Step Into Me And You Will Find Your Destiny_. _Step Into Us And You Will Face Your Fate."_

Now Milo looked around him. It was strange place, to say the very least. It looked like a gigantic palace, glowing with blue and white radiances. It was all very fuzzy, and bathed in a strange halo. The next thing he noticed was the fact that he wasn't crystallized like Kida had been. He was conscious, alive, inside the Crystal itself! He then remembered what fate was awaiting him if he stayed in there for too long. And then tried to figure out why he was there anyway. He wasn't part of the royal family. He wasn't of royal blood.

"_Be welcome here, Milo Thatch-toap."_

Milo turned round awkwardly, ready to face whoever had spoken so softly. The person he looked at was a woman. She didn't seem real. Her entire body was made of the same halo that surrounded everything. But she did not look unreal either. And she looked vaguely familiar too. Judging upon the tattoos her kind face sported, her blue eyes, her atiitude, the feathery crown sophisticated blue and purple dress she wearied, she had to be Atlantis's Queen. Wasn't Kida Queen?

"_I am very happy to meet you, Milo."_

"Do…Do I know you?"

"_No, you do not. My name is __Amilhtha, Eleventh Queen of Atlantis."_

"It's..um…It's a pleasure, your Highness."

"_There is no need for you to call me that way, Milo. After all, you are going to marry my daughter."_

"Your…daughter?!? Kida's your daughter?? You're-

"_Yes, I am Kidagakash's mother. I will be forever grateful to you. You saved both my daughter and Atlantis.__ I wish you and Kida all the happiness in the world."_

"Well, uh, thanks…But, uh, I just did the right thing, you know, saving Atlantis and all that."

She seemed to giggle and smiled at him. Then, just like Kida had done when Milo had first met her, Amilhtha took his hand and led him somewhere inside the Crystal.

"Excuse me, but…where are we going?"

"_You have to face the Tribunal."_

"The-The Tribunal? What Tribunal??"

"_The Kings' Tribunal."_


	14. World of the Heart

**Author's note: Um…oops? I know some of you have been waiting for an update for quite a long time, and I am truly sorry for not having been able to post this sooner. However, I do have excuses: lots of work, personal problems, not to mention the translation from French into English that takes some extra time**** (please excuse the possible typos and mistakes that might remain), …**

**Anyway, to make myself forgiven, you are going to have an extra LONG chapter (10 pages on Word)! Lost and lots of explanation in this chapter, as well as some OC that I hope you will like. There are even some details in here that will be crucial for later stories…**

**Atlandim: I have made some serious research regarding Kida's mother's name, and I have found nothing official that tells me her name is 'Maralana', so I will stick to 'Amiltha' ;-)**

**Julie, sorry ****again for the blood mingling thing, but as my good old friend William Shakespeare wrote it in the prologue of **_**Romeo and Juliet: **_

"_**what is now the traffic of our stage; **_

_**The which if you with patient ears attend, **_

_**What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend."**_

**And now, I'll just let you read!**

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Milo suddenly felt like as if an electric shock had run through his body; apparently, it seemed he was not out of the woods yet. He stopped walking, nearly tripping over his own feet, and removed his hand from Amiltha's as if the contact had burned his skin.

"The- The King's Tribunal? What is _that_ supposed to be?"

The eleventh Queen of Atlantis smiled reassuringly at him.

"_As you already know, the Heart of Atlantis is a fully-fledged living entity because it feeds on our emotions, on what we are and used to be, our ancestors and us. We are literally the reason that gives the Crystal its peculiar consciousness_."

"What does that have to do with the Tribunal?"

Amiltha Nedakh laughed softly whilst the glow in which her body bathed intensified. She took the scholar's pale hand into her own again, and both resumed walking side by side into the strange, blurred depths of the Heart.

"_Be patient, Milo Thatch, for you will soon find all the answers you are looking for. My husband, Kashekim Nedakh, told you Atlanteans are part of the Heart, did he not?_"

"He did."

"I_n a more general way, Atlanteans are bonded, soul-to-soul, with the Mother Crystal from the moment they are born and beyond their death thanks to the crystal pendants they wear around their necks. Each pendant is only a tiny part of the Heart itself. The Kings and Queens of Atlantis have a special place within the Great Crystal, for it is the conjunction of their souls that enables the Crystal to act and react. It is that which triggers Its power. Thus_-

"Whoa, wait a minute!! Back up!! You're…You're telling me the pendants are just as 'alive' as the Heart of Atlantis itself?"

"_Yes. Why do you look so surprised_?"

"…Never mind. Please, carry on."

"_Throughout the lives of those who wear them, the pendants absorb their bearers' emotions, feelings, and pass them on to the Mother Crystal. They are, in a way, the receptacle of Atlanteans' souls. This is why the pendants never loose their inner flagrance: they are inhabited by spirits, immortal feelings that have endured through the ages since the beginning of Time._"

"Okay...What about _me_?"

"_You are wearing the Kings' Crystal. This fragment is different from the other pendants because it has been handed on for generations to all members of the royal family who were destined to rule over Atlantis. It is the very first pendant of all, the one King Lokprakash Atlas himself used to wear around his neck millennia ago. Legend has it-_

"Lokprakash _Atlas_? 'The light of the worlds'…The first King of Atlantis?"

"_Indeed. Legend has it that when he passed away, Lokprakash's soul gave birth to the Mother Crystal so to respect his last will: watching over the city and protecting its inhabitants until the end of Time. But this does not really matters right now. What matters is that the Kings' Crystal, the pendant you are wearing, was never meant to be yours. My daughter Kidagakash, as Princess, was its legitimate heir. But when my husband passed the throne on to you, Milo, since he had no other choice, he also gave you the most powerful shard of crystal of all. It is the Kings' Crystal which saved you when Galesh – Rourke, if you prefer – tried to corrupt your soul. He could not succeed in doing such a thing because your soul, via the Kings' Crystal, is now part of the Heart itself and, as such, it cannot be tainted, unless you decide on the contrary._"

Milo nodded briefly, and then furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"But…if the pendants are the…the receptacles of Atlanteans' souls, and if it is the presence of these very souls that makes the shards shine, how is it they suddenly did go out when Rourke removed Kida –removed the Heart- from the city? I mean, shouldn't they have remained glowing since a person would immediately cease to exist if they lost their soul?"

"_It is a good question_", Queen Amiltha Nedakh nodded approvingly, "a_nd a good question deserves a good answer. You still do not fully understand what the pendants are but no one can expect you to possess the knowledge that has been passed on for millennia. The shards of crystal contain the soul of their owners, yes, but not the way you think. For instance, I felt through Kida's crystal how desperate she was to save Our people's culture. I felt how fierce she was when she fought Rourke's men, and I felt her bliss when she first kissed you. But that- Milo, are you blushing?_"

The scholar could have slapped himself for being so obvious. Embarrassed, he cleared his throat a bit louder than normal circumstances would dictate, and it only made the regal woman beside him smile wider. She decided to take pity on him and tactfully dropped the subject.

"_What you have to understand is that even if I can feel Kida's spirit through her pendant, most of her soul remains within her. The pendants are more like a link. A Bond between the Heart and Atlanteans. When Rourke removed the Heart from the city, the link was broken momentarily, and so the shards stopped glowing for a while. All, except one._"

"The Kings' Crystal. So that's how King Kashekim knew what had happened to Kida. He felt it through his pendant, because the Heart was still linked to it…"

"_I see you are beginning to comprehend how the Bond works. Yes, the Kings' Crystal enabled Us to warn Kashekim. We gave him enough time so he could briefly explain to you what the Heart is, and so when he gave you his crystal, the Bond was repaired._"

"I don't get it."

"_Remember, Milo Thatch, the Kings' Crystal is the most powerful shard of crystal of all, because it has been wearied by every King of Atlantis. As King, one is bonded to the Heart, as every Atlantean is, but one is also bonded to all Atlanteans themselves. A King has a throne, a people to assume._"

"Okay, but what does that have to do with-

"_However powerful as the Kings' Crystal is, it cannot function without the one who wears it around his or her neck. Its power is intimately linked to its bearer's psyche. Kashekim was dying, and with him, the Heart's connection to Its people._"

Milo's eyes widened in brutal realization as truth dawned on him.

"So when he gave me the Kings' Crystal, he re-established the Bond between the Heart and Atlanteans through _me_?"

"_Yes._"

"That's a lot to take in, you know."

The Eleventh Queen of Atlantis hummed a laugh and gave him a smile Milo knew Kida had inherited from her. Amiltha Nedakh put her blurred hand on his shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"_I know, son._"

Milo's jaw dropped instantly, and he briefly wondered what Thaddeus Thatch would have thought if he had been told that his own grandson would one day be called 'son' by a centuries-old Atlantean woman, not even to mention a Queen. As for Milo himself, the acceptance and affection that resided in the very word 'son' was overwhelming enough to send a shiver down his spine. It was then he remembered the other questions he had been meaning to ask her.

"How is it I was able to get here? I am not of royal blood."

"_Yes, you are._"

"Excuse me?"

The eleventh Queen of Atlantis reached for his right hand and turned it so they could both examine his palm. The cut Rourke had inflicted him was still visible, though it did not bleed anymore.

"_Do you not remember what has happened, Milo?_"

"Well, Rourke used his knife – Galesh's knife – to do that. What about it?"

"_Think._"

Milo wracked his brain furiously while trying to determine what detail he could have possibly missed there, for it was obvious he had missed _something_. He replayed in his mind the events that had happened earlier until it finally hit him. He lifted his gaze to stare into Amiltha's eyes, and saw the smile in them. She knew. His voice was barely a whisper when he spoke again, more to himself than to the Atlantean Queen in front of him.

"Kida prevented me from falling. Her left palm was bleeding too. Our bloods mingled…"

"_Yes_", Amiltha approved encouragingly, "_A tiny part of Kida's blood flows in your veins. You are of royal blood._"

"Wow. Just wow. Last question, your highness, if you please: you never explained what the Kings' Tribunal is."

The smile disappeared from the old Queen's face, and her expression became neutral once again and maybe held a zest of sadness and worry.

"_You are now the heir to the throne, although unofficial. In a way, through the Kings' Crystal, you already are the new King of Atlantis. You know the city is once again in danger, but We cannot decide on a course of action, for We do not wish Galesh's death. The Great Kings have thought it best to summon you to discuss how the problem shall be solved…or not. Some of Us think you are the one to blame because, had it not been for your skills, Rourke and his soldiers would never have found the city._"

"But I did not know what they were up to!", Milo exclaimed, horrified.

"_It is not me you must convince, Milo. You brought evil to Us, and although you were not aware of it, you are to be put on trial for this._"

Milo's face fell. Truthfully, he had already felt guilty enough when Kida and he had returned from their first underwater swim. It was true that he could have guessed what had been going on, had he paid a little more attention to some details. He should have guessed. Then again, Preston Whitmore himself had put all his trust in his crew. In Rourke. Milo looked down for a moment, trying to remember what the Commander had said before the submarine was launched. Something about a '_personal enrichment_'. Now that he thought about it, Milo could definitely see all the terrible implications such a statement implied. How naïve he had been! But now, the time for naïveté was over. Milo looked up again, and the eleventh Queen of Atlantis saw the resolute spark in his eyes.

"_Are you ready to face the Kings' Tribunal?_"

He nodded.

"I will assume what I have done."

Queen Amiltha gazed at the young man before her, her blue eyes holding onto his brown ones, and smiled approvingly. He felt comforted by the incredible peace her features radiated.

"_Very well, then. You shall meet your Destiny. Be not afraid, my son, for you are not alone._"

The Queen motioned for him to remain where he was. She took a step forward, turning her back on him, and lifted her arms above her head in prayer. The halo that surrounded her intensified so much that Milo had to shield his eyes, fearing he would be blinded if he did not. And then, he heard her voice echoing powerfully all around him.

"_Kings and Queens of Atlantis, Great Spirits, You have called for the Kings' Tribunal. The Successor waits at the heart of the Heart. He waits for you to pass Judgement on him. Dispense it with justice and equity. The Successor waits at the heart of the Heart!_"

However curious Milo was, he indisputably had a hard time trying to convince himself to actually believe what his eyes told him to believe but what his reason could not even fathom. Nineteen beams of intense light suddenly sprung from nowhere, intertwining with each other, and parting from each other in an endless aerial ballet until they all crashed against what Milo could only describe as the inner walls of the Crystal. He suddenly realized the beams had created a circle of light at the centre of which he was now standing. Looking around in trembling anticipation, Milo saw wreathes of light rise from the different points of impact, and the wreathes soon merged into forms, very blurred at first, that in turn became more specific and took the flickering appearances of all those who had had the honour and duty to rule over the Empire of Atlantis. They were all surrounded by the same halo that seemingly encompassed everything inside the Mother Crystal. Milo swallowed with difficulty. He was unable to remember the last time he had felt this intimidated. Intimidated? Terrified, actually. Terrified that he might make the slightest faux pas in front of all those illustrious figures of Atlantean history. Alarms rang in his had, telling him to wake up immediately and go take care of the boiler in the Smithsonian Institute, but the better part of him chose not to listen. Suddenly, an idea – or rather a memory - struck him, and Milo whirled round to find the man who had entrusted him with the fate of his kingdom and of his daughter. King Kashekim Nedakh stood beside his wife, who had resumed her place at his side. Milo stared at him for a moment, aware that something had changed, although he could not put his finger on it. It only hit him when Kashekim gave him a slight greeting nod, smiling with pride and possibly gratitude. Kida's father was no longer blind. Milo felt himself grinning like an idiot at the sheer impossibility of it, and was about to go and tell King Kashekim how thankful he was for having trusted him out of all people when, suddenly, a powerful voice left him rooted to the spot.

"_The Kings' Tribunal has begun._"

Milo turned round once again to face the one to whom the voice belonged. The scholar gulped. The King who had spoken was dressed in long, elaborate robes, although a piece of crystal-blue armour circled his waist and hips. A crimson cape covered the left side of his muscular body. Long white hair and an equally long beard surrounded his angular face and strong jaw. Several tattoos ornamented his face, right knuckles and torso, making him look all the more regal, charismatic and somewhat very, very intimidating. The severe expression that seemed carved on his face did not help either to change that impression. Milo's eyes drifted to the long sceptre the King held in his right hand, curled into a fist, and then returned to the King's face. Milo was not sure how he knew it, but he was certain that this man –this Spirit- was Lokprakash Atlas, the first King of Atlantis. The linguist and cartographer did not have the time to dwell on this thought, though, for the King spoke again.

"_You shall not speak, Seeker of the Light, unless We grant you permission to do so. Do you understand?_"

Milo simply nodded. King Lokprakash seemed satisfied and addressed his descendants.

"_My Sons and Daughters, Kings and Queens of Atlantis, this man has been chosen by Kashekim Nedakh to become the next ruler of our city. He has been summoned here so We can judge whether he is worthy enough to assume such responsibilities, and to decide on a course of action regarding the Evil he has brought to Us; an Evil that has been vicious enough to take possession of two of Our sons, Galesh and Melkim, and possibly others if We do not act quickly. Speak now, and make your opinions known._"

Hesitant murmurs danced in the air. Kashekim Nedakh was the first to express his point of view.

"_We have to help Milo Thatch, Lokprakash, for he is Our only hope to restore the balance of the Heart._"

Milo felt a surge of affection and relief swell into his chest. For some reason, it seemed very important to him that Kida's father was on his side. But relief could not last, for another King decided to speak up.

"_No! This alien..._", and Milo couldn't help but notice how the words were spat like venom, "_this outsider should be punished for what he has done! He will keep damaging Atlantis as long as he lives!_"

"_You are out of your mind, Hrishikesh!_", one of the Queens retorted immediately. "_He never meant to harm Us. He saved Atlantis and Ourselves by returning Us to the city._"

"_Because he had no other choice if he wanted to redeem himself, and you know it, Dayamayi!_"

"_Then, Hrishikesh, even you admit he has indeed redeemed himself._", another King pointed out, apparently the youngest of all. He seemed rather amused.

"_How amusing it is to hear those words from your mouth, Mukunda. You cannot help but to be in favour of Milo Thatch because of your fondness for tolerance, can you? Shall We discuss what you did with your wife again?_"

King Mukunda glared at the Queen who had spoken those words. It was only then that Milo noticed that if there were indeed eleven Kings around him, there were only ten Queens at their sides. Where the missing Queen was, he could not imagine, but apparently this was a rather touchy subject within the Heart. King Mukunda – 'the one who gives Freedom', Milo instantly translated - roared with indignation.

"_This has nothing to do with Our current problem, Yamini! Cursed be your tongue and your cruel words!_"

King Hrishikesh snorted and took Queen Yamani's hand in his in a gesture of appreciation and support. A mortified Milo dared to cast a glance at Lokprakash, but the first King of Atlantis gave no indication of whether he agreed with King Hrishikesh and Queen Yamani or not. Soon, all Kings and Queens were engulfed in the turbulent throes of a heated argument that turned into ancient rivalries and quarrels that Time and Death themselves had not been able to pacify. Milo watched and listened, appalled and helpless, and felt his blood begin to boil with rising pain and fury. He had almost gathered enough courage to speak even though he was forbidden to when he heard Kida's name being mentioned. He pricked up his ears, positive that the Kings and Queens had finally remembered Rourke and the threat the former commander, even if he was not exactly material, represented.

"_It is your disaster of a daughter!_", King Hrishikesh shouted at the top of his lungs, and the halo surrounding him became almost blinding. Kashekim Nedakh's responded in kind, and Milo was forced to close his eyes, entirely relying on his other senses.

"_That again!_"

"_Yes, that. Again and again! Falling in love with an outsider, and agreeing to marry __him!! If we do not fix this, our social standing is done for!_"

"_Oh please, Hrishikesh, do not talk nonsense! We are Atlantis' Great Kings! And Milo Thatch proved he is more than worthy of becoming King._"

"_He is not one of Us!_"

"_He has passed the Trials!_", Queen Amiltha Nedakh vehemently interjected.

"_Fortunately, Kashekim, I have a plan. Now see how smart I am!_", Hrishikesh continued as if he had not been interrupted.

"_I have an idea_."

"_We let Galesh have Kida. If it turns out Galesh is handier than this alien in the bedroom, which should not be too difficult-_

"What's that supposed to mean?!?"

Milo yelled his reply before he could even think about stopping it. But except for King Hrishikesh and Queen Yamani, no one seemed to care about the fact he had spoken without having been given the permission to do so.

"_You are not allowed to talk, outsider! Anyway, Kashekim, if Galesh is more upstanding than that mollusc scholar-_

"Hey!! Hello?? I'm here!!"

"_- your daughter might soon await a 'happy event'. That is when We repair your mistakes by killing Galesh one way or another._"

"_You want Us to kill Galesh?_", Queens Amiltha and Dayamayi asked, obviously taken aback.

"_Yes! That way you get your daughter back on the throne that is legitimately hers; she still rules over Atlantis and announces she is expecting the heir. A true, pure-blooded Atlantean male heir!_"

"_Just to remind you, people are not as stupid as you seem to think they are. They will know the baby is an illegitimate child! And I am not even mentioning the fact that Milo will not let anyone steal his Kida from him, much less if she is with child!_"

King Kashekim paused for a second then looked over to where Milo was standing.

"_Or will you?_"

"Never!"

"_There is a moment, Kashekim, when you have to step in. I will admit, that is the risky bit._", Queen Yamani remarked with a sarcasm that was much sharper than a serpent's tooth.

"_Let Us recap: We kill Galesh to retrieve the Queen to provide an Atlantean heir in the hope she is pregnant and, according to you, Hrishikesh, not with a girl._"

"_That is about it._"

"_And I am the element of risk?_"

"_It is worth a try._"

"_Try without me! I used to listen to stupid plans all day when I was young and alive – plans that led Us to Our downfall - I do not need them in my afterlife as well!_"

"**ENOUGH!!!"**

Silence crashed like a bomb, and suddenly Milo wondered for a millisecond what on Earth he had been thinking to allow himself to cry out like that. But what was done was done, and he seized the opportunity to carry on.

"You claim you are the Kings and Queens of Atlantis? Then do your duty and protect your city! You want to punish me? Fine, I don't care! Go on, banish me, torture me, and kill me, whatever!! But why should Kida be punished? Why should _your people _be punished for something they have not done? Rourke is down there, threatening them all, and all you can think about is quarrelling like children over a piece of cake?!? You should be ashamed! If this is what being King means to you, then I'll wear the badges of 'alien' and 'outsider' with pride!"

Milo did not know exactly what kind of reaction he expected from the royal assembly that surrounded him, but it was certainly not the explosion of laughter that followed his speech. Kashekim, Amiltha, Dayamayi, Mukunda, and Lokprakash himself had thrown their heads back in hearted laughter while some others Kings and Queens kept staring at the scholar, their mouths hanging wide open. As for King Hrishikesh and Queen Yamani, they looked like they had just been hit in the solar plexus by some titanic force. A moment passed, and then Lokprakash Atlas wiped away his tears of laughter and cleared his throat, indicating he was ready to speak up.

"_Milo Thatch, I have never heard such a blasphemous speech leaking from the mouth of someone who was not allowed to speak._"

Milo did not look down. From the corner of his eye, he could see Kashekim and Amiltha Nedakh looking proudly at him. The first King of Atlantis paused, possibly for dramatic effect, and then gave the scholar an amused, tolerant smile. When he spoke again, his voice was deep and warm.

"_But since I have entered the depths of the Great Crystal, I have never heard more honest, truer words either. My Sons and Daughters, if this is not enough proof for you that Milo is worthy enough to be Our legitimate Successor, I do not know what you need. He deserves Our respect and Our help. However, it will not be said that the Kings and Queens of Atlantis impose Their will like tyrants do. Let Us put it to the vote. Those of you who do not think We should help Milo to defeat the Corrupted, raise your hands._"

Eight hands out of twenty were counted.

"_Those of you who do think We should help him._"

Twelve hands rose in the air without hesitation. Kashekim, Amiltha, Dayamayi, and Mukunda, especially, beamed at Milo, obviously extremely pleased that the Kings' Tribunal was on his side. Lokprakash put his blurred hands on the scholar's shoulders.

"_Congratulations, Milo, it seems you have earned your place amongst Us._"

"I-I don't know what to say."

"_That does not matter. Now listen carefully, Seeker of the Light, for the path you will have to tread on is a difficult and dangerous one. Millennia ago, when I was still a young man and the world did not resemble what it is now, I was destined to become the chieftain of Our people. Not because of my blood, but because of the way I had always acted as a good leader. We were simple people, Sons and Daughters of the Sea, and although numerous, we were not warriors. As a consequence, we were constantly living under the threat of being attacked by other tribes. The hunger for power and the need to oppress other people are certainly not new occurrences. And so, one fateful day, half of my people were slaughtered mercilessly by a tribe of bloodthirsty warriors who did not put their blades into their sheaths until the metal itself could not absorb more life. I remember the blood of my people flowing down the streets of our city, the fire that ravaged our dwelling-places, the screams of our women while they were being raped, and the cries of our children who had to witness such horrors with eyes that had suddenly lost their innocence. I fought bravely, but all those I cared for were killed right in front of my eyes by the leader of this horde of murderers, and I suddenly recognized his face. He was my father's best friend. He had betrayed us all. Horrified and aware that my life was at stake, I ran away and hid into a place I had discovered when I was a child. It was a cave at the heart of which one could find a lake of clear and pure water. I do not know for how long I remained hidden in the shadows, but when I became too hungry to stay any longer, I gathered enough courage to go out again and hunt. Just when I had made my first kill of the night, I saw a bright star in the sky. A star that grew bigger and bigger, and seemed to charge at my refuge with incredible speed. One second I was watching it, and the next I was sprawled out on the ground as the star hit my cave in an explosion of light._"

"A meteor…"

"_Indeed. When I regained consciousness, I ran as fast as my legs would enable me, and discovered that my cave had been almost completely destroyed. But I was fascinated by the lake. Its waters glowed brightly, though softly. I looked into its depths and saw the stone that had fallen from the heavens. It looked so beautiful, so attractive that I immediately decided to dive and grab hold of it._"

"It was the Crystal, wasn't it?"

King Lokprakash Atlas smiled at Milo.

"_Yes. From the shining stone I carved the Kings' Crystal, the pendant you are now wearing. I discovered, too, that the lake suddenly had immense healing properties. And so I used the Crystal to gather the rest of my people and prepare us for the next we would be attacked. The Crystal gave us the hope and energy we needed to recover from the blow we had suffered. When the tribe of murderers came again, because they had heard we were beginning to thrive again thanks to a mysterious power force, we were ready. And this time, they were the ones who died. The Crystal protected us, and I founded the city of Atlantis. As time passed, the Crystal developed itself just like we did, and when each King and Queen passed away, its power grew consequently._"

"That's fascinating but-

"_But you do not understand why I am telling you this. Pay attention; if you want to defeat an enemy, you must have a tactical advantage. In a combat, it can be many things. But in this case – in the case of a corrupted soul-, we need to know about Our enemy's weaknesses. What can you tell Us about him?_"

"What-You mean about Rourke? I'm not sure…I mean, I did not had to hang around him for such a long time, which of course doesn't mean I regret it because I don't but-

"_Milo._"

"Oh, right, sorry. Um- I would say Rourke's a cold, methodical planner, which makes his rage all the more dangerous. He is vain, too, but he knows it and won't let his vanity be his downfall-

"_Weaknesses, Milo. We are looking for weaknesses!_"

"He has none that I know of! Well, except that he's a bad guy and all but that's not the point. Malevolent, ruthless, capable of profound evil, what else can I say?"

"_You see, Lokprakash? This alien is completely useless to Us!_"

The first King of Atlantis and Milo turned round together to watch as King Hrishikesh pointed an accusing finger to the scholar.

"_Watch your tongue, Hrishikesh! Who are you to contest The Kings' Tribunal?_"

"_Lokprakash, may I suggest something?_", Queen Amiltha Nedakh demanded softly.

"_Please do._"

Kida's mother approached with grace and elegance.

"_If Milo is not able to tell Us about Rourke's weaknesses, then we have to find someone who can._" Turning to her soon-to-be son-in-law –that is, if everything went right-, she took Milo's hand is both of hers and squeezed it gently. "_Milo, do you know someone who would be able to tell you what We need to know?_"

Milo thought for a moment, and only one name occurred to him.

"Well, there's Helga, but she died in the volcano. I don't see how-"

"_Of course!_", Lokprakash exclaimed, "_Why did We not think of this sooner?_"

"I'm sorry?"

"_Listen, Milo, We are going to send you back in time. Yes, you heard me correctly. The Heart has the capacity to reverse the flow of Time, but this is very dangerous and extremely tiring, so you will have to be careful. The Crystal Lake – the one the Crystal fell into in the first place when I discovered it- still exists in the caves that surround the city. We will send you there. Do what you have to do. If you succeed, more than one person will be redeemed._"

King Lokprakash Atlas clapped his hand twice, and everything around Milo began to turn at a dizzying speed Kings and Queens of Atlantis slowly disappeared in a bath of light, and Milo could only watch as his own body seemed to vanish progressively.

"Hey, hey, hey, wait a minute! What am I supposed to do?? And what if I don't succeed?"

"_Do not worry, Milo Thatch, my son._", Queen Amiltha's soothing voice came from nowhere, only a dim echo that enveloped the scholar, "_You have already succeeded._"

Everything went black as Milo lost consciousness, leaving the world of the Heart.

* * *

**There you go! Critics, comments, I welcome them all! :-)**


	15. A Twist of Fate

**Author's note: Hey! Good surprise for you all, guys! ^^ For once I'm not going to apologize for the delay! (It is an exception to the rule). I was eager to share that chapter with you, and hope you will like it! As always, please excuse the remaining typos and/or mistakes. **

**And as for musical suggestions, here is what I (strongly) recommend, in the following order:**

**The Village OST: The Gravel Road (James Newton Howard)**

**The Two Towers (Lord of the Rings) OST: The White Rider (Howard Shore)**

**The Return of the King (Lord of the Rings) OST: The Black Gate Opens (Howard Shore) = this one's a must!**

**Océans OST: Le Nouveau Monde (Bruno Coulais)**

**Alexander OST : Roxane Vell (Vangelis)**

**The Two Towers (Lord of the Rings) OST : Evenstar (Howard Shore)**

**

* * *

**

Everything was black, and everything was cold. But everything was not silent. It was the strange noise, repetitive and incessant, that reverberated on the inner walls of the place – wherever that might be- where Milo lay motionless that woke the young man up. When his eyelids opened lazily, Milo did not wonder where he was, why he was there, and not even how he ended up there. The one and only thing he was focused on was the extraordinary feeling of well-being that filled him from head to toe. He did not remember ever feeling this at peace with his conscience. His body was completely relaxed, liberated from any pain, and although the cold contact between the rock and his bare chest made him shiver, it did not bring the slightest displeasure. Milo closed his eyes again for he was too busy savouring the tranquillity in which he was happily drowning.

However, he knew this could not last, that it was not meant to last. The noise that had woken hip up from his peaceful slumber – assuming he had been asleep – rang out once more; it was quick, successive and regular, like the tempo of some particularly dynamic score. Milo pulled himself off the ground with a groan. Running his hand through his hair, he blinked a couple of times and then looked around him, trying to take into his surroundings.

_Where is this place?_

All of a sudden, a torrent of memories flooded his mind, and while his brain tried to register all the information that surfaced from this violent stream of consciousness, everything eventually seemed to make sense.

_The Heart of Atlantis! The Kings' Tribunal! _

Milo jumped to his feet. If he remembered correctly, he was now in the Past. Trying in vain to apprehend the sheer concept of it, he could not even begin to accept the fact that he could be at the 'same' time, in two completely different places at two completely different moments. It was unnatural, irrational and absolutely unimaginable. And yet, it was even more unimaginable to think that the Kings' Tribunal had only been a simple dream. Milo spun round several times on himself. He was standing on the shore of an underground lake. The scholar peered at it with careful eyes, noticing how the lake's waters glowed softly and the numerous sparkling points that he could only assume were pieces of crystal. This had to be the Crystal Lake King Lokprakash had spoken about. The very place where the Heart of Atlantis had first fallen into. A lake whose waters held almost as powerful healing properties as the Great Crystal itself. For a moment, Milo could not help but remember how weak he had felt ever since Rourke had stabbed him. The young man had no idea how much time he had spent within the Heart, but it sure proved to have been marvellously beneficial. The terrible fatigue that had been viciously wolfing him down seemed to have vanished in thin air.

When Milo heard the strange noise for the third time, even though it seemed to come from far away, he paid more attention to it. It was a harsh sound, and although continual, brief and precise. He had heard that noise before.

_Guns. Rifles._

Milo knew instantly what was happening. What he was hearing in the distance was nothing but the terrible promise of the fierce battle between the Atlantean Armada and Commander Lyle Rourke's mercenaries. Bullets kept ricocheting off when they did not reach their targets. Canons roared with hatred at the heart of the still-sleeping volcano. Milo suddenly caught a glimpse of a powerful explosion whose intense blue brilliance cut its path through a fault in the rock, about five hundred feet away from where he was standing. The scholar knew –how, he could not explain- this was where he was meant to play his part in the battle he was actually _already_ leading. The wild, curious desire he felt to observe himself drove him away from the Crystal Lake at a swift pace. The closer he came to the rocky interstice, the more distinct and familiar the noises became. And when he was finally close enough to witness what was happening, he was left speechless and could only watch as he heard himself – his _other _self- shouting orders to Vinny, preparing the diversion that would ultimately lead to the scholar's final leap of faith from his Aktirak onto the scarlet balloon. Thousands feet above him, he spotted the unmistakable flash of Mrs. Packard's camera. Milo shook his head in amusement and turned his attention to Mole, Audrey and Sweet who were busy trying to saw the chains that held the balloon's extra load.

"Go on, Milo, jump already…", he heard himself whisper, and then mentally slapped himself.

_What the hell am I doing? This is not some __kind of entertainment show!_

The fault in the rock was large enough for two adults to get through. Milo stepped hesitantly forward, watching carefully where he put his feet, for some instinct told him he should not be seen, otherwise the space-time continuum would suffer excruciatingly damaging consequences. Lost in his thoughts, Milo wiped away the bead of sweat that covered his forehead…when a beam of deadly blue energy, spat by the gaping mouth of a Martag, almost scared the life out of him as it passed only millimetres away from his face. The scholar instinctively felt the need to cry out to whoever had fired that he obviously needed to learn how to aim, but, remembering his quite unusual situation, refrained himself from doing so and resumed gazing up at the ever-ascending balloon. Up there, he could make out the two figures of Rourke and Helga while they were fighting furiously. Knowing what was about to happen, Milo inwardly winced and braced himself. And indeed, for the second time, he stood helpless, half hidden in the shade of the rock, as the Commander mercilessly through his right-hand man -woman- overboard. As her body cleaved through the air, Lieutenant Helga Sinclair's cry echoed in Milo's ears as he suddenly remembered King Lokprakash's words. _"If you succeed, more than one person will be redeemed."_ The King's meaning had finally come to him, and Milo bounced forward without hesitation.

* * *

Helga ignored the searing pain that shot through her broken body. She was a soldier, and a good one at that. A soldier doesn't give a damn about pain. She knew she was more than probably living the last moments of her existence, but that didn't mean she would die having done nothing against the bastard who had betrayed her. Fury and hatred giving her painful wings and feeding her with boiling energy, she gathered what little strength she had left to take her personal gun and aim at the balloon.

"Nothing…personal.", she growled.

An insane feeling of satisfaction filled her as she succeeded in setting her target on fire and thus prevented Rourke from making it to the surface. The son of a bitch would pay for what he had done to her, and for what he had done to all the Atlanteans. A growing part of her now wished that Rourke would suffer the bitterest defeat of his whole life; and if she had to pay with her own life to obtain that ultimate satisfaction, then so be it. Helga knew her wounds were too severe to be able to make it. Each movement was a torture, each contracting muscle a reason to pray for Death to come quickly. She had the impression her body was being constantly pierced by a range of sharpened spears. In the heartbeat of time, when everything seemed to be simpler and clearer, Helga noticed the way her senses were gradually loosing their acuteness. It was only a matter of time before Death claimed her life, and she gazed up once again at the balloon that went rapidly closer to the ground. It would crash, she knew, and then she would die instantly. Blinking to stay focused, she thought she could make out movement aboard the balloon. She peered at it, ignoring the way her vision was becoming blurrier by the second, and let out a raw gasp when she realized Thatch was actually _fighting_ Rourke. The idiot. How could he even imagine he would keep up the distance? He was no match for the Commander. And Rourke, she knew, would not stop until he could expose the scholar's corpse for the whole world to see. The bastard was going to break Thatch like a bloody twig! It was as simple as that. He was doomed, like the Atlanteans. Like her.

Her eyes decided to close on their own accord. The world was fading around her, and her consciousness progressively did the same. Helga was dying, and the only thing she now wanted to do was laugh at life. What a joke it was! However, as everything went black, she remembered something her father had told her when she was only a child. He had said: "Don't hold anything against life, and leave it without grudge. Life is the only thing we have, and we have only one." Truthfully, she had never known, until now, how right her father had been.

_Scheiße__! Thatch, Ich wünsche, dass ich Dihr helfen könnte. Ich nehme an, dass ich Dich in einem anderen Leben wieder sehen will. Mutter, Vater, Christopher, bitte verzeihen Sie mir_. _Bitte verzeihen Sie mir…_[Shit! Thatch, I wish I could help you. I guess I'll see you in another lifetime. Mother, Father, Christopher, please forgive me. Please forgive me…]

* * *

Milo ran as fast as he could. The balloon would soon crash, and then the volcano would not be long to eject its 'pyroclastic fury', as Mole would put it. If Milo was to save Helga, he'd better do it quickly. The fissure he had passed through was not that far, but he would have to climb up the rock to reach it again. And the Lieutenant would slow the both of them down. 'Fortunately', Milo thought, she had fallen on the side opposite to where Vinny and the others were. At least he didn't have to worry about being seen anymore. The scholar eventually spotted the motionless body he was looking for, and hurried to the blonde woman's side. Dropping to his knees, he quickly checked for a pulse and was slightly relieved: her heart was still beating, but for how much longer, he did not know. Every second was infinitely precious. Deciding that it would help a bit if Helga was at least conscious, he put his hands on her shoulders and shook her as gently as he could, calling her name. She stirred, obviously in pain.

"Helga! Come on, wake up, wake up, wake up!" Milo cried urgently. Looking up for a second, he saw that Rourke had begun trying to kill him - his other him - with the balloon's emergency axe. Time was running short. The scholar's attention was shattered when he heard a groan behind him. Whirling round, he watched as the Lieutenant struggled to move. She did not seem to have noticed his presence.

"Helga!"

She stopped moving, as if struck by lighting. Then her eyes met his, and their gazes held for what seemed like an eternity. She looked at him as if he were a ghost.

"Th-Thatch? But-but…"

She looked up to see Rourke seize Milo by his neck and lift him at arms' length, ready to behead the poor scholar. How could he be in front of her as well, his face illuminated by a piece of crystal that glowed around his neck, bare-chested and wearing a blue Atlantean kilt? He gently put his hand on her shoulder, and she jerked it away, instantly regretting it because of the pain that shot through her.

"Helga, please, listen to me, we've gotta-

"You-You're up there!"

"I know! Long, complicated story. Don't ask, there's no time! The volcano's gonna erupt, and we'd better get out of here!"

He smiled, and then added: "Sometime today would be nice."

"In case you haven't noticed, Einstein, I can't move!"

"Thanks for the compliment. I know you can't. That's why I'm here to carry you. You ready?"

The blast of the explosion drowned everything else while they instinctively braced themselves. Helga looked hesitantly at Milo, who had shielded her body with his and was still waiting for her answer, and then nodded. He didn't wait any longer and helped her as best as he could to get on his back. Gritting her teeth, resolved that there was no way she'd show him the pain she was experiencing, Helga encircled her arms around Milo's neck, and allowed him to pass his hands under knees to support her weight in a piggy back ride fashion. She was way too exhausted to actually protest, and much less to wonder why he was willing to save her. He began to walk as fast as he could to get the both of them as far away as possible from the balloon's point of impact. The base of the volcano started to shatter, spitting fountains of moulting lava all around them. The last thing Helga noticed was Milo stopping for a millisecond and bending over to pick up what looked like a broken piece of dark-blue crystal. By the time he reached the fissure that would lead them to safety, she had lost consciousness again.

* * *

Milo kneeled so he could put Helga down as gently as possible on the shore of the Crystal Lake and spare her any unnecessary pain. He straightened himself, hands on his hips, and arched his back to soothe the aching muscles that were not accustomed to put in such an intense and extended effort. He actually found himself yearning for Doctor Sweet's skilled hands. However, one look at Helga was enough to remind him that his cramps, aches and bruises were nothing in comparison to her wounds. Carefully, Milo removed the gloves that hid Helga's hands and checked for her pulse once again. Satisfied but still worried, he put her arm alongside her flank and brought his head to her forehead. It was hot, feverish. The scholar stole a glance at what remained from the upper-part of his clothes and tore it in a fluid motion. Folding it methodically, Milo went to the Crystal Lake and plunged his hand into it until the piece of fabric was sufficiently saturated with water. Returning to the Lieutenant's side, he put the improvised compress on her face and gently dabbed her neck, cheeks and forehead. The only reaction he got from her was an almost imperceptible sigh that sounded like a 'thank you' to him. Milo was no doctor, but he knew what he had to do, no matter how hesitant he was to do it. Heck, simply thinking about it made him shrink and set his cheeks on fire!

The scholar shook his head vigorously, removed the Kings' Crystal from his neck and sank into the lake until he stood waist-deep in water. He did not actually know what he was doing, not even what he was supposed to do, but he supposed the Heart of Atlantis did. He had come this far, after all. So, Milo brought his pendant to his lips, closed his eyes in prayer and concentrated all his thoughts on the words he spoke with a fervour he himself was not aware of.

"I am destined to rule over Atlantis. The city is in danger. I need this woman's help to protect it, and I am ready to pay any price in return of her healing. Great Spirits, I appeal to your benevolence. Heal her. Heal she who has been broken."

The Kings' Crystal instantly diffused a dazzling light all around it, and Milo quickly plunged it into the Crystal Lake, glancing every now and then above his shoulder to take a look at the motionless form of Helga. And then, as discreetly as a firefly on a summer night, a single shimmering spot appeared at the heart of the lake. Then a second. Then a third, and so on until Milo was literally bathing in crystalline water whose thousand bluish sparkles painted a liquid constellation. Around the scholar's body, the water undulated peacefully, its lapping whispering the soft promise of a wish yet to be granted. Milo replaced the Kings' Crystal around his neck and, half soaked, resumed his place at Helga's side. Taking her hand into his, he was horrified to find out how cold her skin was. There was no more time to lose. Milo closed his eyes for a second, gulped and took a deep breath to calm himself.

"Okay, Milo, don't panic, all you have to do is…Geez, I can't believe I'm going to do that! All you have to do is undress her. There's nothing wrong with that. It's to heal her. It's for her own sake. For her own sake…"

With trembling fingers, he brushed the straps of Helga's shirt and immediately yanked his hands away as if he had burned himself.

"She's gonna kill me", he cried, "She is so going to kill me! And Kida too…Okay, let's try this again…"

With all the precautions in the world, Milo removed the white shirt from the Lieutenant's body, put it on the ground and purely refused to let his gaze come to rest more intrudingly than necessary on her exposed curves. He was thankful he had gone to swim with Kida several times before, for it slightly helped him to bear the idea he was about to undress Helga until she'd wear nothing but her undergarments. He was almost done when he noticed the small knife that was tightly secured around one of her ankles. Milo hesitated for a second, wondering whether he should take it away from her or not, and finally decided that it was probably for the better, for:

A knife could always come in handy, and God only knew when he might actually need one to defend himself. Just in case…

Compared to the rest of Helga's clothes, removing a knife from her ankle truly was a piece of cake.

The Crystal Lake – or whatever power resided in its depths – might consider it offending to tread in its waters with a weapon.

Helga would probably be much more resentful for the rest!

Once Milo was finished, he carefully lifted Helga's body, cradling her against his chest and trying to avoid any misplaced behaviour, and took her with him into the Crystal Lake. Half-submerged , he let go of her, watching anxiously as her pale body floated peacefully and ready to catch her if anything went wrong. The glittering spots in the water intensified, and the lake soon glowed with the Crystal's power. Milo took a step back, sensing Helga had to be on her own for the healing to be complete. Churning waters surrounded the wounded body for what felt like a lifetime, and then withdrew again. Soon, Milo's pendant was once more the only source of light in the dark cave the both of them were. Milo stepped closer to Helga, and nodded in appreciation at the absence of any wounds on the woman's body. Even the limbs he feared had been broken at the end of her free fall from the balloon seemed to be perfectly fine. Only then did he realize the contact of water had made the only clothes she was still wearing become transparent. Refusing to look, he carried her out of the Crystal Lake, praying with every fibre of his being she would not regain consciousness before he had had the time to be out of her reach. Unfortunately, Milo had learned first hand that luck and bad luck were a balance; have one of them, and you could be sure the other would be waiting for you around the next corner! And given the fact he had just been lucky enough to make the Crystal heal Helga…

And sure enough, as soon as he had put her on the ground, Helga's eyes shot open, staring intently at him. Unable to move, he could only watch as her blue eyes widened in shock as she realized she was almost naked under him. Glaring at the young man who was bent over her, she contracted her muscles…

"Hey, hey, hey! Look, I- I know this might look like what you seem to th-think it looks like but-

But it was already too late. The next thing Milo knew, he was sprawled out on the ground a couple of feet away from her, his hands coiled around his own neck, coughing and struggling to breathe. It took him a moment to realize she had just delivered him a punch to the windpipe. He had heard how painful that was, but it was a totally different thing to actually feel it! If powerful enough, such hits could make a man suffocate and die easily. Gasping as he finally managed to get some fresh air into his lungs, Milo shook his head, brain managing to shake back into place. Pushing himself off the rocky floor, he had trouble to simply swallow his own saliva. Only then did he hear her indignant cry. He still didn't look at her.

"How did you dare, Thatch?!?"

"Nice way to say 'thanks'…", he grumbled, "…for saving you."

"Excuse me?"

"Rourke. Remember Rourke? The balloon."

Milo did not see it, but Helga's face went as pale as death.

"You fell. I saved you. I found a way to heal you. But I had to get you into that lake over there to do this. Your wounds needed to be visible, and I also figured out you'd be happy to have some dry clothes to put on afterwards. That's…", he breathed deeply, "…the only reason I undressed you. Now believe or not, but I'd appreciate it if you could actually get dressed again and stop hitting me without knowing what is going on."

"Then, while I do this, maybe you could explain what actually happened?"

"Of course."

* * *

"So, you're basically saying Rourke's soul has somehow survived, corrupted Atlanteans, and the damn Crystal sent you back in time in order to save me from the volcano's eruption so I could provide you with information about Rourke, right?"

"Yeah."

"I don't buy it."

"As a matter of fact, I have trouble buying it myself."

"Fair enough. What makes you think I can actually give you the information you're looking for?"

"Look, I may be a bookworm and a nerd, but I'm not stupid. Don't think I haven't noticed about you and Rourke."

"I've no idea what you're talking about."

"Yeah, right. And the both of you just happened not be there each and every time the crew gathered during the journey to Atlantis. Especially during the meals, I may add."

Helga frowned, wondering whether she should hit the man in front of her or not. He looked different. Not only physically; his attitude had deeply changed. This was no longer the man she had almost scared to death in his own rundown apartment. He looked like he had found his place in the world. But that did not mean she had to be on his side, much less like him.

"And just why should I help you?"

"Well, because you owe me your life, for instance."

"I'd say that makes up for the time I saved your skin from that bloody Leviathan, Einstein. We're even."

"You tried to steal the Crystal from Atlantis, and the Crystal healed you. Surely that counts for something?"

She snickered.

"I'm afraid it doesn't."

"You know it does."

"Nein."

"Doch."

She was surprised to hear him speak German at first, but reminded herself he probably knew more languages than she could even imagine.

"Helga, I know you're not as bad as Rourke. Don't try to prove the contrary."

"You are wrong, Thatch. I'm just like him. You're just too foolish to see it. I don't give a damn about your precious Atlanteans and whatever fate awaits them and their Princess."

"Kida's Queen now. Her father died of internal bleeding."

"Oh." She looked down for a second. "Well, that doesn't change the rest of my sentence. I was willing to destroy an entire civilization for my own personal enrichment, remember?"

"Sure do."

"Then why do you think I'd possibly help you now?"

"_That is not riches, which may be lost; virtue is our true good and the true reward of its possessor. That cannot be lost; that never deserts us, but when life leaves us. As to property and external riches, hold them with trembling; they often leave their possessor in contempt, and mocked at for having lost them._"

She laughed.

"Who on earth said that?"

"One of the greatest men in recorded history."

"Let me guess; your old friend Plato?"

"No."

"Oh? Now that would be a first! Who, then?"

"Leonardo Da Vinci. Look, I am not going to harass you, but think about it for a moment! Rourke betrayed you, remember? He threw you overboard without a second's hesitation! I can give you the revenge I know you are yearning for. That, and a chance to clear your name. Help me, Helga. Please help me save my people and the woman I love."

She turned away, refusing to look at him.

"…"

"Please, Helga."

"You're talking as if you were their King."

"Well…In a way, I am."

She whirled round, shock written on her face as she faced him once more.

"I'm sorry?"

"I…asked Kida to marry me."

"Don't tell me she agreed."

"She did."

"Jesus Christ."

He chose to ignore her comment.

"Well? Will you help me?"

"I'm sorry Milo, but this is none of my business. All I want to do is get out of here."

"The choice is yours to make."

"I've already chosen."

He sighed in defeat, and she watched as he plunged his hand into his waist belt. Apparently he had been using it as a pocket. He took a tiny piece of paper from it, and unfolded it carefully before handing it to her. She lifted her eyes to look at him, her question visible on her face.

"Atlantean hunters know these caves perfectly. It's a map I've made, based upon what they have told me. Nothing exceptional, but you'll be able to make it to the surface thanks to it."

"…I…don't know what to say."

"Then say nothing. Good luck, Helga Sinclair. Now, if you will excuse me, I have a city to save from a crazy mercenary, and I'm running out of time. May the Spirits of Atlantis watch over you."

Milo smiled one last time to her, and she could only watch as he ran away from her. She stared at his fading back for a moment; she turned round to cast a glance at the Crystal Lake she now knew had saved her, and then sighed in frustration.

"I can't believe I'm going to do this."

Helga put the map into one of her pockets, and sprinted away, hurrying to catch up with the linguist who had actually been able to accomplish a miracle once and defeat Rourke. Why not twice?

"Thatch! Wait a second!"

He stopped as soon as he heard her call his name. She could not see it, but he savoured the triumphant smile that came over his lips. He patiently waited for her to be in front of him and lifted one eyebrow in an unspoken question. She gave him a wicked smile.

"I can't read your handwriting, so I think I'll stick around for a while."

He grinned. Things were definitely getting better.


End file.
